Persistent rains means India could lose No. 1 Test ranking to arch-rivals Pakistan
With rain continuing to play spoilsport in the fourth Test between hosts West Indies and India at the Port of Spain, Virat Kohli’s side are on the verge of losing the No. 1 Test ranking they earned recently after Sri Lanka whitewashed Australia 3-0 at home.
What’s even more intriguing is the fact that India’s arch-rivals Pakistan will leapfrog the Men in Blue to claim the No. 1 ranking for the first time, ever since the official rankings were introduced in 2003.
Pakistan climbed to the No 2 spot with 111 points after victory in the fourth Test against England, leaving them a solitary point behind India, who are currently on top with 112 points. Should India fail to beat Jason Holder’s side in the fourth Test, they will lose two points thus allowing Pakistan to leapfrog them into first place with a one-point lead.
Virat Kohli’s men have been on a roll in the Carribean having already secured the four-match Test series with victories at Antigua and St Lucia, and were on top for much of the rain-affected second Test at Jamaica as well.
A win at the Queen’s Park Oval would have helped them cement their position as the world’s No. 1 Test side, but with the rain gods not in their favour, India appears helpless in denying Pakistan’s historic landmark.
Speaking after the victory at the Oval, which helped Pakistan clinch a thrilling 2-2 Test series draw against hosts England, skipper Misbah-ul-Haq had spoken about his side’s ambitions of being the best Test side in the world.
He said that the team were fully deserving of the title considering the fact that they were forced to play their home games in the UAE due to security issues back home in Pakistan.
"This team deserves that for six years of not playing any games at home," Misbah said. "Sometimes people think it's really easy for us playing in the UAE. They think the wickets suit us and we win there. But just living every day away from your country, without your family and friends, and playing every game away from Pakistan, is really difficult. It's mentally tough.”
"But still, the team is winning. Still, the team is playing competitive cricket. There were lots of questions before we came here about whether we could only play in Asian conditions, but we have shown that we are good enough to play even in these conditions. At one stage we were winning this series. I'm really proud of this team and I think that, if we can be No. 1 after all these results, then we really deserve that," he added.
Despite the setback, India can very well reclaim the top spot with a busy home schedule featuring as many as 13 Tests lined up after the tour of West Indies is wrapped up.