Root ascended five positions to become the No. 1 Test batsman after scoring an unbeaten 118 and 46 in a losing cause in Birmingham.
Joe Root has surpassed Marnus Labuschagne to become the new No. 1 rated Test hitter in the current ICC Men’s Test batting rankings, which were revealed on Wednesday.
Since reaching to the top in December 2023, Labuschagne has kept the number one slot for nearly six months. However, Root’s stunning 30th Test century against Australia in the dramatic inaugural Ashes Test at Edgbaston has grabbed the top place from the Australian middle-order batsman.
Root gained five places to be regarded as the No. 1 Test batsman after scoring an unbeaten 118 and 46 in a losing cause in Birmingham. While Labuschagne fell to third following a lacklustre performance in the Ashes opening, experienced New Zealand batsman Kane Williamson has risen two spots to second.
Along with Labuschagne, Steve Smith and Travis Head both dropped positions, with Smith sliding four spots to sixth and Head losing one slot to fourth. Pakistan’s Babar Azam comes in fifth place.
Usman Khawaja of Australia, who was named Player of the Match for his batting heroics, ascended to a new career-high position of seventh, with Rishabh Pant the only Indian in the top ten. India’s captain, Rohit Sharma, is ranked 12th, while Virat Kohli is ranked 14th.
In the bowling rankings, India’s leading spinner Ravichandran Ashwin maintains his lead, followed by experienced England pacer James Anderson, South African pacer Kagiso Rabada, and Australian captain Pat Cummins.
England pacers Ollie Robinson and Stuart Broad are in the top ten, while spinner Moeen Ali, who played his debut Test with a blister on his spinning finger against Australia over two years ago, returns to the rankings in 52nd place.
