Kane Williamson is now just two steps away from the top spot in the ICC Player Rankings for Test Batsmen, which were released after the conclusion of the Dunedin and Hobart Tests.
Kane Williamson of New Zealand. Photo by WICB Media/Randy Brooks
Williamson has earned the rise to third place, just three points off South Africa’s AB de Villiers, thanks to two consistent knocks of 88 and 71, helping New Zealand extend its winning streak to 12 home Test victories in a row, after it beat Sri Lanka by 122 runs.
Williamson’s team-mate Martin Guptill has jumped up a remarkable 18 places, after scoring 156 and 46. Guptill was rewarded with only his second man of the match award in Tests.
Black Caps skipper Brendon McCullum has moved up two places to 17th, while his Sri Lanka opposite number Angelo Matthews has marked the visiting side’s presence in the top 10 batsman rankings, down one place to seventh.
Over in Hobart, Australia skipper Steven Smith has tumbled three places to fourth and he is now just 11 points ahead of his team-mate David Warner.
But there was better news for Adam Voges who led the charge for Australia with a first innings double-century. The Western Australia batsman remained unbeaten on 269, thus ensuring his side did not need to bat again in the Test. Australia has taken a 1-0 lead in the series after beating West Indies by an innings and 212 runs.
Voges’ knock has vaulted him 19 places to a career-high 15th place in the latest rankings. Shaun Marsh supported Voges ably, scoring 182, and together the pair added a sixth-highest all time partnership of 449 runs. In the process, Marsh has risen 17 spots to a career best 37th in the batsman rankings.
West Indies Darren Bravo has been rewarded for being the lone centurion from his side, moving up two spots to 25th.
In the ICC Player Rankings for Test Bowlers, Australia’s Josh Hazlewood has entered the top 10, rising up four spots after claiming seven wickets in Australia’s win over the West Indies, while off-spinner Nathan Lyon has moved up two spots into 15th after a three-wicket haul in Hobart.
Josh Hazelwood of Australia. Photo by WICB Media/Randy Brooks of Brooks Latouche Photography
New Zealand’s Trent Boult grabbed four wickets against Sri Lanka allowing him to retain sixth place as the top six spots in the bowler rankings has remained unchanged. Dale Steyn maintains pole position which he has done since December 2013, while Rangana Herath’s two wickets were enough to keep him in 10th position. Nuwan Pradeep’s four wickets in the first innings have earned him a six-point rise up the rankings to 53rd.
The all-rounders held steady in the top four positions, Ravindra Jadeja managing to move up a spot and enter the top five club, for a career best fifth place ranking and has Proteas’ Vernon Philander in his sights.
The second and final Test between New Zealand and Sri Lanka starts in Hamilton (18-22 December) with the home side aiming to seal the win which would see it overtake England by a decimal point into fifth place on 99 points in the ICC Team Rankings.
ICC TEST PLAYER RANKINGS (as on 15 December, after Dunedin and Hobart Tests)
Batsmen
Rank (+/-) Player Team Pts Avge HS Ranking
1 ( – ) Joe Root Eng 886 54.90 917 v Aus at Trent Bridge 2015
2 (+1) AB de Villiers SA 881 51.39 935 v Aus at Port Elizabeth 2014
3 (+1) K. Williamson NZ 878 49.16 893 v Aus at Perth 2015
4 (-3) Steven Smith Aus 874 54.61 936 v Eng at Lord’s 2015
5 ( – ) David Warner Aus 863 50.64 880 v NZ at Perth 2015
6 (+1) Younus Khan Pak 826 53.94 880 v SL at Lahore 2009
7 (-1) A. Mathews SL 814 50.46 877 v NZ at Christchurch 2014
8 ( – ) Hashim Amla SA 810 50.64 907 v Pak at Abu Dhabi 2013
9 ( – ) Alastair Cook Eng 803 47.47 874 v Ind at Kolkata 2012
10 (+1) Misbah-ul-Haq Pak 764 48.89 842 v NZ at Abu Dhabi 2014
Selected rankings
Rank (+/-) Player Team Pts Avge HS Ranking
11 (-1) Ross Taylor NZ 753 45.99 871 v WI at Hamilton 2013
15 (+19) Adam Voges Aus 720*! 76.83 720 v WI at Hobart 2015
17 (+2) B McCullum NZ 697 38.73 760 v SL at Christchurch 2014
21 ( – ) D Chandimal SL 690! 46.94 690 v NZ at Dunedin 2015
25 (+2) Darren Bravo WI 631 41.34 709 v Aus at Trinidad 2012
29 ( – ) D Karunaratne SL 607 35.97 619 v WI at Galle 2015
30 (+5) Tom Latham NZ 590*! 41.00 590 v SL at Dunedin 2015
31 (-3) B J Watling NZ 579 37.64 644 v Eng at Headingley 2015
35 (+7) K Brathwaite WI 556 33.76 591 v Eng at Grenada 2015
39 (+17) Shaun Marsh Aus 537*! 37.72 537 v WI at Hobart 2015
53 (+18) Martin Guptill NZ 441 30.60 597 v WI at Jamaica 2012
Bowlers
Rank (+/-) Player Team Pts Avge HS Ranking
1 ( – ) Dale Steyn SA 875 22.56 909 v WI at Centurion 2014
2 ( – ) R Ashwin Ind 871! 25.39 871 v SA at Delhi 2015
3= ( – ) J Anderson Eng 846 28.96 847 v WI at Barbados 2015
( – ) Yasir Shah Pak 846*! 24.17 846 v Eng at Sharjah 2015
5 ( – ) Stuart Broad Eng 840 29.12 852 v Aus at Trent Bridge 2015
6 ( – ) Trent Boult NZ 803 28.10 825 v Eng at Lord’s 2015
7 (+4) J Hazlewood Aus 792*! 22.65 792 v WI at Hobart 2015
8 (-1) R Jadeja Ind 789*! 23.76 789 v SA at Delhi 2015
9 ( – ) V Philander SA 746 22.08 912 v Ind at Johannesburg 2013
10 (-2) R Herath SL 739 29.66 851 v Pak at Colombo (SSC) 2014
Selected rankings
Rank (+/-) Player Team Pts Avge HS Ranking
12 (+2) T Southee NZ 687 32.31 799 v WI at Jamaica 2014
15 (+2) N Lyon Aus 641 33.78 648 v Eng at Melbourne 2013
16 ( – ) D Prasad SL 626* 35.97 632 v WI at Colombo (PSS) 2015
17 (+1) P Siddle Aus 619 30.06 816 v Eng at Old Trafford 2013
23 (+3) N Wagner NZ 540* 34.01 549 v WI at Barbados 2014
53 (+6) N Pradeep SL 331*! 46.77 331 v NZ at Dunedin 2015
88 (+28) M Santner NZ 166*! 25.33 166 v SL at Dunedin 2015
89 (+9) D Chameera SL 160*! 43.77 160 v NZ at Dunedin 2015
All-rounders
Rank (+/-) Player Team Pts HS Ranking
1 ( – ) R Ashwin Ind 406 419 v WI at Mumbai 2013
2 ( – ) S Al Hasan Ban 384 419 v Zim at Khulna 2014
3 ( – ) S Broad Eng 315 382 v Pak at Abu Dhabi 2012
4 ( – ) V Philander SA 298*/ 376 v Aus at Cape Town 2014
5 (+1) R Jadeja Ind 259*/*! 259 v SA at Delhi 2015
*indicates provisional rating; a batsman qualifies for a full rating after playing 40 Test innings; a bowler qualifies for a full rating when he reaches 100 Test wickets.
!indicates career-highest rating