India’s 4-1 series victory over England propelled them to the summit of the ICC Men’s Test Team Rankings, surpassing Australia. Despite a narrow loss in the first Test in Hyderabad, India staged a comeback, clinching victories in the subsequent matches held in Vizag, Rajkot, Ranchi and Dharamsala.
This successful run elevated India to the top spot in the ICC Test Team Rankings, overtaking Australia, with a total of 122 rating points. Meanwhile, Australia settled in second place with 117 points, followed by England at third with 111 points.
Will India’s position change after the New Zealand-Australia Test?
Regardless of the outcome of the second New Zealand-Australia Test in Christchurch, India is set to maintain its leading position. Meanwhile, Australia, the winners of the ICC World Test Championship 2023, currently lead the two-Test series against New Zealand, holding a 1-0 advantage after a convincing victory in Wellington.
With this, India is now at the summit of rankings in all three formats. They have 121 rating points in the ODI rankings, with Australia sitting a close second with 118 rating points. In the T20Is, India has 266 rating points, with England (256) in second place.
This was the scenario from September 2023 to January 2024, before India slipped to second place in Test Team Rankings after a drawn 1-1 series against South Africa. Australia overtook India at the top of the Test rankings, after sweeping the three-Test series at home against Pakistan.
India vs England, 5th Test Match
In this match, after winning the toss and choosing to bat first, England posted 218 runs in their first innings, with Zak Crawley leading the scoring with 79 runs. Kuldeep Yadav and Ravichandran Ashwin excelled with the ball for India, taking five and four wickets respectively.
India responded strongly in their first innings, led by captain Rohit Sharma’s century and contributions from Yashashwi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikkal, and Sarfaraz Khan. Despite a late-order resistance from Kuldeep Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah, India managed a commanding total of 477 runs.
Facing a daunting deficit of 259 runs in their second innings, England struggled to build partnerships, with Joe Root’s valiant effort of 84 runs going in vain. Ravichandran Ashwin’s five-wicket haul in the first session ensured England’s collapse, leading to their defeat by an innings and 64 runs. Ashwin, along with Kuldeep Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah, starred with the ball for India.
(With inputs from ANI)