India may already have been presented with the ICC Test Championship Mace after being assured of the top place in the ICC MRF Tyres ICC Test Team Rankings at the cut-off date of 3 April but South Africa and Australia feature in a four-Test series from Thursday in what could be an interesting tussle for the second place.
India clinched the $1 million prize money for the second year running and South Africa will be similarly looking to seal the second prize of $500,000 which they are well placed to do. Australia can overtake South Africa if they win 3-0 or better but Australia (104 points) also have the danger of slipping from their third position and seeing either New Zealand or England overtake them as the two sides are scheduled to play a two-Test series that also culminates on 3 April.
India clinched the $1 million prize money for the second year running and South Africa will be similarly looking to seal the second prize of $500,000 which they are well placed to do. Australia can overtake South Africa if they win 3-0 or better but Australia (104 points) also have the danger of slipping from their third position and seeing either New Zealand or England overtake them as the two sides are scheduled to play a two-Test series that also culminates on 3 April.
Australia could slip to 100 points with a 4-0 loss and to 101 with a 3-0 loss while New Zealand (100) can go up to 104 points with a 2-0 win while a similar comprehensive verdict for England (99) will see them go up to 102 points. The side finishing third gets $200,000 and the fourth team gets $100,000.
Series scenarios:
· South Africa win 4-0 – South Africa 120, Australia 100
· South Africa win 3-0 – South Africa 118, Australia 101
· South Africa win 2-0 or 3-1 – South Africa 117, Australia 102
· South Africa win 1-0 – South Africa 116, Australia 103
· Drawn series – South Africa 114, Australia 106
· Australia win 4-0 – Australia 111, South Africa 108
· Australia win 3-0 – Australia 110, South Africa 110 (behind on decimals)
· Australia win 2-0 or 3-1 – South Africa 111, Australia 109
· Australia win 1-0 – South Africa 112, Australia 109
In the MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings, Australia captain Steve Smith will be looking to further enhance his stature as an all-time great batsman as he would get a chance to improve on his tally of 947 points, which is the second best in the all-time list led by Don Bradman (961) points.
Smith is currently 35 points ahead of second-placed Virat Kohli while vice-captain David Warner has a good opportunity of moving upward from his fifth position. Usman Khawaja (17th) and Shaun Marsh (joint-18th) are the other Australians in the top 20 for batsmen.
Fast bowler Josh Hazlewood leads their list of bowlers in fourth position, off-spinner Nathan Lyon and left-arm pace bowler Mitchell Starc are joint-10th while Pat Cummins is another bowler who would be looking to move up towards the top 20 from his current 27th spot.
South Africa boast a number of players in the top-20 for both batsmen and bowlers and the home conditions would present them with a chance to improve their rankings.
Hashim Amla leads their list of batsmen in seventh position, with opener Dean Elgar (10th), AB de Villiers (13th) and captain Faf du Plessis (14th) the others in the top 20, while wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock is in 25th place.
Pace bowler Kagiso Rabada (875 points) would be looking to reclaim the top position among bowlers as he trails England’s James Anderson by just 12 points, while Vernon Philander (791 points) similarly trails India’s Ravichandran Ashwin by 12 points and is currently in sixth position.
Morne Morkel would be looking to sign off on a high as he enters his last Test series in ninth position and 773 points, with Sri Lanka’s Rangana Herath and New Zealand’s Neil Wagner within 11 points of the pace bowler. Left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj is another of their top-20 bowlers in 19th position.
Series schedule:
1-5 March – 1st Test, Durban
9-13 March – 2nd Test, Port Elizabeth
22-26 March – Cape Town
30 March – 3 April - Johannesburg
The Test team rankings, unlike the ODI and T20I rankings, are updated after the end of the series and the Test predictor function is available here.
For more information on player rankings, please click here
MRF Tyres ICC Test Team Rankings (as of 27 February, before the South Africa-Australia series)
Rank Team Points
1 India 121
2 South Africa 115
3 Australia 104
4 New Zealand 100
5 England 99
6 Sri Lanka 95
7 Pakistan 88
8 Windies 72
9 Bangladesh 71
10 Zimbabwe 01
(Developed by David Kendix)
MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings as of 27 February, before the South Africa-Australia):
Batsmen (top 20)
Rank Player Team Pts Avge Highest Rating
1 Steve Smith Aus 947! 63.75 947 v Eng at Sydney 2018
2 Virat Kohli Ind 912! 53.40 912 v SA at Johannesburg 2018
3 Joe Root Eng 881 53.28 917 v Aus at Trent Bridge 2015
4 Kane Williamson NZ 855 50.62 893 v Aus at Perth 2015
5 David Warner Aus 827 48.77 880 v NZ at Perth 2015
6 C. Pujara Ind 810 50.51 888 v SL at Nagpur 2017
7 Hashim Amla SA 771 49.08 907 v Pak at Abu Dhabi 2013
8 Azhar Ali Pak 755 46.62 787 v Aus at Melbourne 2016
9 Alastair Cook Eng 742 46.35 874 v Ind at Kolkata 2012
10 Ross Taylor NZ 739 48.04 871 v Win at Hamilton 2013
11 Dean Elgar SA 736 42.07 740 v NZ at Dunedin 2017
12 D. Chandimal SL 722 43.75 746 v Ban at Chittagong 2018
13 AB de Villiers SA 699 49.92 935 v Aus at Port Elizabeth 2014
14 Faf du Plessis SA 697 45.10 734 v Ind at Centurion 2018
15 Jonny Bairstow Eng 692 39.12 772 v SA at Old Trafford 2017
16 Kraigg Brathwaite Win 690 37.43 701 v Eng at Headingley 2017
17 Usman Khawaja Aus 685 45.80 747 v Pak at Sydney 2017
18= Shaun Marsh Aus 660! 40.87 660 v Eng at Sydney 2018
Ajinkya Rahane Ind 660 43.68 825 v NZ at Indore 2016
20 Lokesh Rahul Ind 657* 40.50 761 v SL at Pallekele 2017
Bowlers (top 20)
Rank Player Team Pts Avge Highest Rating
1 James Anderson Eng 887 27.40 896 v Win at Lord's 2017
2 Kagiso Rabada SA 875 22.04 888 v Ind at Cape Town 2018
3 Ravindra Jadeja Ind 844 23.73 899 v Aus at Ranchi 2017
4 Josh Hazlewood Aus 814 25.77 863 v Ind at Bengaluru 2017
5 R. Ashwin Ind 803 25.56 904 v Eng at Mumbai 2016
6 V. Philander SA 791 21.85 912 v Ind at Johannesburg 2013
7 Neil Wagner NZ 784 27.87 785 v Win at Wellington 2017
8 Rangana Herath SL 777 28.18 867 v Zim at Harare 2016
9 Morne Morkel SA 773 28.08 776 v Aus at Cape Town 2011
10= Nathan Lyon Aus 769 31.64 774 v Eng at Adelaide 2017
Mitchell Starc Aus 769 27.73 805 v Pak at Brisbane 2016
12 Trent Boult NZ 725 28.56 825 v Eng at Lord's 2015
13 Dale Steyn SA 722 22.32 909 v Win at Centurion 2014
14 Yasir Shah Pak 704 29.44 878 v Eng at Lord's 2016
15 M. Shami Ind 703! 28.90 703 v SA at Johannesburg 2018
16 Stuart Broad Eng 683 29.33 880 v SA at Johannesburg 2016
17 Tim Southee NZ 682 31.45 799 v Win at Jamaica 2014
18 Shakib Al Hasan Ban 655 32.35 705 v Aus at Mirpur 2017
19 Keshav Maharaj SA 634* 26.78 695 v Zim at Port Elizabeth 2017
20 B. Kumar Ind 626*! 26.09 626 v SA at Johannesburg 2018
All-rounders (top five)
Rank Player Team Pts Highest Rating
1 Shakib Al Hasan Ban 421 489 v Aus at Mirpur 2017
2 Ravindra Jadeja Ind 391 438 v SL at Colombo (SSC) 2017
3 R. Ashwin Ind 368 493 v Eng at Mohali 2016
4 Ben Stokes Eng 358/* 396 v Win at Lord's 2017
5 V.Philander SA 322 376 v Aus at Cape Town 2014
*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
Series scenarios:
· South Africa win 4-0 – South Africa 120, Australia 100
· South Africa win 3-0 – South Africa 118, Australia 101
· South Africa win 2-0 or 3-1 – South Africa 117, Australia 102
· South Africa win 1-0 – South Africa 116, Australia 103
· Drawn series – South Africa 114, Australia 106
· Australia win 4-0 – Australia 111, South Africa 108
· Australia win 3-0 – Australia 110, South Africa 110 (behind on decimals)
· Australia win 2-0 or 3-1 – South Africa 111, Australia 109
· Australia win 1-0 – South Africa 112, Australia 109
In the MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings, Australia captain Steve Smith will be looking to further enhance his stature as an all-time great batsman as he would get a chance to improve on his tally of 947 points, which is the second best in the all-time list led by Don Bradman (961) points.
Smith is currently 35 points ahead of second-placed Virat Kohli while vice-captain David Warner has a good opportunity of moving upward from his fifth position. Usman Khawaja (17th) and Shaun Marsh (joint-18th) are the other Australians in the top 20 for batsmen.
Fast bowler Josh Hazlewood leads their list of bowlers in fourth position, off-spinner Nathan Lyon and left-arm pace bowler Mitchell Starc are joint-10th while Pat Cummins is another bowler who would be looking to move up towards the top 20 from his current 27th spot.
South Africa boast a number of players in the top-20 for both batsmen and bowlers and the home conditions would present them with a chance to improve their rankings.
Hashim Amla leads their list of batsmen in seventh position, with opener Dean Elgar (10th), AB de Villiers (13th) and captain Faf du Plessis (14th) the others in the top 20, while wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock is in 25th place.
Pace bowler Kagiso Rabada (875 points) would be looking to reclaim the top position among bowlers as he trails England’s James Anderson by just 12 points, while Vernon Philander (791 points) similarly trails India’s Ravichandran Ashwin by 12 points and is currently in sixth position.
Morne Morkel would be looking to sign off on a high as he enters his last Test series in ninth position and 773 points, with Sri Lanka’s Rangana Herath and New Zealand’s Neil Wagner within 11 points of the pace bowler. Left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj is another of their top-20 bowlers in 19th position.
Series schedule:
1-5 March – 1st Test, Durban
9-13 March – 2nd Test, Port Elizabeth
22-26 March – Cape Town
30 March – 3 April - Johannesburg
The Test team rankings, unlike the ODI and T20I rankings, are updated after the end of the series and the Test predictor function is available here.
For more information on player rankings, please click here
MRF Tyres ICC Test Team Rankings (as of 27 February, before the South Africa-Australia series)
Rank Team Points
1 India 121
2 South Africa 115
3 Australia 104
4 New Zealand 100
5 England 99
6 Sri Lanka 95
7 Pakistan 88
8 Windies 72
9 Bangladesh 71
10 Zimbabwe 01
(Developed by David Kendix)
MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings as of 27 February, before the South Africa-Australia):
Batsmen (top 20)
Rank Player Team Pts Avge Highest Rating
1 Steve Smith Aus 947! 63.75 947 v Eng at Sydney 2018
2 Virat Kohli Ind 912! 53.40 912 v SA at Johannesburg 2018
3 Joe Root Eng 881 53.28 917 v Aus at Trent Bridge 2015
4 Kane Williamson NZ 855 50.62 893 v Aus at Perth 2015
5 David Warner Aus 827 48.77 880 v NZ at Perth 2015
6 C. Pujara Ind 810 50.51 888 v SL at Nagpur 2017
7 Hashim Amla SA 771 49.08 907 v Pak at Abu Dhabi 2013
8 Azhar Ali Pak 755 46.62 787 v Aus at Melbourne 2016
9 Alastair Cook Eng 742 46.35 874 v Ind at Kolkata 2012
10 Ross Taylor NZ 739 48.04 871 v Win at Hamilton 2013
11 Dean Elgar SA 736 42.07 740 v NZ at Dunedin 2017
12 D. Chandimal SL 722 43.75 746 v Ban at Chittagong 2018
13 AB de Villiers SA 699 49.92 935 v Aus at Port Elizabeth 2014
14 Faf du Plessis SA 697 45.10 734 v Ind at Centurion 2018
15 Jonny Bairstow Eng 692 39.12 772 v SA at Old Trafford 2017
16 Kraigg Brathwaite Win 690 37.43 701 v Eng at Headingley 2017
17 Usman Khawaja Aus 685 45.80 747 v Pak at Sydney 2017
18= Shaun Marsh Aus 660! 40.87 660 v Eng at Sydney 2018
Ajinkya Rahane Ind 660 43.68 825 v NZ at Indore 2016
20 Lokesh Rahul Ind 657* 40.50 761 v SL at Pallekele 2017
Bowlers (top 20)
Rank Player Team Pts Avge Highest Rating
1 James Anderson Eng 887 27.40 896 v Win at Lord's 2017
2 Kagiso Rabada SA 875 22.04 888 v Ind at Cape Town 2018
3 Ravindra Jadeja Ind 844 23.73 899 v Aus at Ranchi 2017
4 Josh Hazlewood Aus 814 25.77 863 v Ind at Bengaluru 2017
5 R. Ashwin Ind 803 25.56 904 v Eng at Mumbai 2016
6 V. Philander SA 791 21.85 912 v Ind at Johannesburg 2013
7 Neil Wagner NZ 784 27.87 785 v Win at Wellington 2017
8 Rangana Herath SL 777 28.18 867 v Zim at Harare 2016
9 Morne Morkel SA 773 28.08 776 v Aus at Cape Town 2011
10= Nathan Lyon Aus 769 31.64 774 v Eng at Adelaide 2017
Mitchell Starc Aus 769 27.73 805 v Pak at Brisbane 2016
12 Trent Boult NZ 725 28.56 825 v Eng at Lord's 2015
13 Dale Steyn SA 722 22.32 909 v Win at Centurion 2014
14 Yasir Shah Pak 704 29.44 878 v Eng at Lord's 2016
15 M. Shami Ind 703! 28.90 703 v SA at Johannesburg 2018
16 Stuart Broad Eng 683 29.33 880 v SA at Johannesburg 2016
17 Tim Southee NZ 682 31.45 799 v Win at Jamaica 2014
18 Shakib Al Hasan Ban 655 32.35 705 v Aus at Mirpur 2017
19 Keshav Maharaj SA 634* 26.78 695 v Zim at Port Elizabeth 2017
20 B. Kumar Ind 626*! 26.09 626 v SA at Johannesburg 2018
All-rounders (top five)
Rank Player Team Pts Highest Rating
1 Shakib Al Hasan Ban 421 489 v Aus at Mirpur 2017
2 Ravindra Jadeja Ind 391 438 v SL at Colombo (SSC) 2017
3 R. Ashwin Ind 368 493 v Eng at Mohali 2016
4 Ben Stokes Eng 358/* 396 v Win at Lord's 2017
5 V.Philander SA 322 376 v Aus at Cape Town 2014
*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
By: Editor
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