Ninth-ranked Bangladesh faces South Africa, the number one ranked side in the ICC Test Team Rankings, in the first game of a two-Test series which starts in Chittagong on Tuesday, with the home side bidding to close the gap on the West Indies.
Although Bangladesh cannot improve its position in the table, it will be aiming to reduce eighth placed West Indies’ 40-point lead.
In the event of a 1-1 series draw, Bangladesh would rise to 47 points, while South Africa would drop to 125 points.
The following are the permutations for the forthcoming series:
Bangladesh (41 pts) v South Africa (130 pts)
· If Bang wins 2-0, then Bang 53 pts, SA 119 pts
· If Bang wins 1-0, then Bang 51 pts, SA 121 pts
· If SA wins 2-0, then Bang 40 pts, SA 132 pts
·If SA wins 1-0, then Bang 42 pts, SA 130 pts
· If the series is drawn 1-1, then Bang 47 pts, SA 125 pts
To find out exactly how the forthcoming series will affect the rankings table, please click here. The Test rankings table, unlike the ODI & T20I tables, is updated after the series.
ICC Test Player Rankings
Proteas paceman Dale Steyn heads into the series in number one position on 905 points in the ICC Player Rankings for Test Bowlers and the 32-year-old has a significant 82-point advantage over England’s James Anderson. Steyn could reach the 400-wicket milestone during this series and the Phalaborwa man currently lies on 396 wickets in 78 Tests to date. He is one of three South Africans inside the top 10, alongside sixth-placed Vernon Philander and Morne Morkel (ninth).
Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan is his side’s highest ranked bowler in 15th place on 619 points, with the other bowlers inside the top 50 for the hosts heading into the series is another left-arm spinner Taijul Islam (42nd).
With South Africa’s AB de Villiers unavailable for this series, his skipper Hasim Amla has the chance to gain a rankings boost in the ICC Player Rankings for Test Batsmen. Amla lies in third place on 891 points, 10 adrift of Australia’s Steven Smith who himself could improve his tally in the second Ashes Test which will be nearing completion at Lord’s by the time this series starts. De Villiers currently holds a seven-point lead over Smith in the rankings.
Faf du Plessis is the next best ranked South Africa batsman in 18th place and Bangladesh’s leading batsmen heading into the series are Mominul Haque (24th), Tamim Iqbal (27th) and Shakib (29th).
Shakib is the leading all-rounder on either side in the ICC Player Rankings for Test All-rounders heading into the two-match series and he goes into the series with a 40-point advantage over Philander, who is in second on 341 points.
Upcoming Test fixtures
Bangladesh v South Africa
21-25 Jul – 1st Test, Chittagong
30 Jul-3 Aug – 2nd Test, Mirpur
England v Australia
16-20 Jul – 2nd Test, Lord’s
29 Jul-2 Aug – 3rd Test, Edgbaston
6-10 Aug – 4th Test, Trent Bridge
20-24 Aug – 5th Test, The Oval
ICC Test Team Rankings (as on 19 July, ahead of Bangladesh-South Africa Test series)
1. South Africa 130
2. Australia 111
3. Pakistan 101
4. New Zealand 99
5. India 97
6. England 97
7. Sri Lanka 92
8. West Indies 81
9. Bangladesh 41
10. Zimbabwe 5
(Developed by David Kendix)
ICC Test Player Rankings (as on 19 July, ahead of Bangladesh-South Africa Test series)
Batsmen
Rank Player Team Points Ave HS Rating
1 AB de Villiers SA 908 52.09 935 v Aus at Port Elizabeth 2014
2 Steven Smith Aus 901 55.27 913 v WI at Jamaica 2015
3 Hashim Amla SA 891 52.78 907 v Pak at Abu Dhabi 2013
4 Joe Root Eng 884! 56.06 884 v Aus at Cardiff 2015
5 K. Sangakkara SL 874 58.04 938 v Eng at Kandy 2007
6 Angelo Mathews SL 860 51.67 877 v NZ at Christchurch 2014
7 Younus Khan Pak 829 54.07 880 v SL at Lahore 2009
8 Kane Williamson NZ 813 45.70 860 v Eng at Lord's 2015
9 Virat Kohli Ind 755 45.73 784 v NZ at Wellington 2014
10 David Warner Aus 749 46.47 880 v Ind at Adelaide 2014
Selected Rankings
Rank Player Team Points Ave HS Rating
18 Faf du Plessis SA 704* 51.67 710 v WI at Port Elizabeth 2014
24 Mominul Haque Ban 653* 58.75 661 v Pak at Mirpur 2015
27 Tamim Iqbal Ban 627 39.67 707 v Eng at Old Trafford 2010
29 Shakib Al Hasan Ban 615 39.72 629 v Pak at Mirpur 2015
40 JP Duminy SA 545 36.57 586 v SL at Galle 2014
49 Dean Elgar SA 506*! 37.65 506 v WI at Cape Town 2015
Bowlers
Rank Player Team Points Ave HS Rating
1 Dale Steyn SA 905 22.55 909 v WI at Centurion 2014
2 James Anderson Eng 823 29.39 847 v WI at Barbados 2015
3 Trent Boult NZ 814 27.12 825 v Eng at Lord's 2015
4 Yasir Shah Pak 810*! 24.81 810 v SL at Pallekele 2015
5 Stuart Broad Eng 801! 29.59 801 v Aus at Cardiff 2015
6 V. Philander SA 780 21.95 912 v Ind at Johannesburg 2013
7 M. Johnson Aus 766 28.01 849 v Pak at Dubai 2014
8 Rangana Herath SL 752 30.17 851 v Pak at Colombo (SSC) 2014
9 Morne Morkel SA 727 29.35 776 v Aus at Cape Town 2011
10 Tim Southee NZ 713 31.63 799 v WI at Jamaica 2014
Selected Rankings
Rank Player Team Points Ave HS Rating
15 Shakib Al Hasan Ban 619 33.08 700 v Zim at Khulna 2014
42 Taijul Islam Ban 381* 33.17 446 v Pak at Khulna 2015
58 JP Duminy SA 302* 39.34 327 v SL at Colombo (SSC) 2014
61 Kyle Abbott SA 292* 19.84 354 v Aus at Cape Town 2014
64 Jubair Hossain Ban 278* 33.46 305 v Zim at Chittagong 2014
67 Mahmudullah Ban 263* 46.41 381 v WI at Grenada 2009
68 Simon Harmer SA 256*! 21.85 256 v WI at Cape Town 2015
All-rounders
Rank Player Team Points HS Rating
1 Shakib Al Hasan Ban 381 419 v Zim at Khulna 2014
2 V. Philander SA 341*/ 376 v Aus at Cape Town 2014
3 R. Ashwin Ind 336*/ 419 v WI at Mumbai 2013
4 M. Johnson Aus 294 384 v Eng at Cardiff 2009
5 Stuart Broad Eng 268 382 v Pak at Abu Dhabi 2012
*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