Josh Hazlewood, Kagiso Rabada reach respective career-best in latest ICC rankings
Young pace sensations Josh Hazlewood and Kagiso Rabada made impressive gains to attain career-best points in the latest ICC rankings, the first ones to be released this year.
Hazlewood claimed seven victims in Australia’s 220-run win over Pakistan in the Sydney Test, helping him move two places to reach the third spot in the Test bowlers’ rankings. With Australia’s win, Pakistan succumbed to a three-nil clean sweep, their fourth consecutive whitewash since 2000. Hazlewood’s rise up the order means that he is closing in quickly on the Indian duo of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, who occupy the top two positions in the bowling rankings.
Kagiso Rabada, on the other hand, took ten wickets as South Africa sealed a 282-run win over Sri Lanka, helping his side clinch the Test series 2-0, with one more match to go. The performance catapulted him to the top-10, helping him reach the eighth spot after having started the series on the seventeenth position. He replaced New Zealand’s Neil Wagner in the top-10. Pakistan’s Wahab Riaz, and Sri Lanka’s Suranga Lakmal also attained career-best figures.
Star of South Africa’s team in the U-19 World Cup in 2014, Rabada was fast-tracked into the national side, and made the promotion count by displaying his prowess with the new ball in the absence of the injured Dale Steyn.
In the batting rankings, his teammate Quinton De Kock reached career-best rankings of eight, just above his teammates, the injured AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla. Steve Smith continues to be the top-ranked batsman, followed closely by Virat Kohli, Joe Root, Kane Williamson and David Warner. Younis Khan, with 175 and 13 in the final Test, broke in the top-10 again, replacing India’s Cheteshwar Pujara.
Test rankings for batsmen
| No. | Batsmen | Ranking Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Steve Smith (AUS) | 933 |
| 2. | Virat Kohli (IND) | 875 |
| 3. | Joe Root (ENG) | 848 |
| 4. | Kane Williamson (NZ) | 817 |
| 5. | David Warner (AUS) | 812 |
| 6. | Azhar Ali (PAK) | 779 |
| 7. | Younis Khan (PAK) | 772 |
| 8. | Quinton de Kock (SA) | 769 |
| 9. | AB de Villiers (SA) | 762 |
| 10. | Hashim Amla (SA) | 749 |
Test rankings for bowlers
| No. | Bowlers | Ranking Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | R Ashwin (IND) | 887 |
| 2. | Ravindra Jadeja (IND) | 879 |
| 3. | Josh Hazlewood (AUS) | 860 |
| 4. | Rangana Herath (SL) | 848 |
| 5. | Dale Steyn (SA) | 827 |
| 6. | James Anderson (ENG) | 810 |
| 7. | Stuart Broad (ENG) | 803 |
| 8. | Kagiso Rabada (SA) | 796 |
| 9. | Vernon Philander (SA) | 782 |
| 10. | MItchell Starc (AUS) | 770 |