Vaibhav Tripathi
England’s talismanic cricketer Joe Root has reclaimed the top spot in the ICC Rankings for men’s Test batters, displacing Australia’s Marnus Labuschagne. Root’s stellar performances with the bat in the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston propelled him to this position. Despite England’s loss, Root’s unbeaten scores of 121* and 46 showcased his exceptional skill, resulting in a significant rise of five places in the rankings.
Labuschagne, who struggled in Australia’s victory with scores of 0 and 13, slipped down to the third position after enjoying his reign at the top for a little over six months. New Zealand’s Kane Williamson jumped two places to secure the second spot.
Travis Head, who scored a fifty in the first innings of the Edgbaston Test, slipped to fourth place in the batting charts. Steve Smith, after a disappointing performance with scores of 16 and 6, experienced a drop of four places.
Usman Khawaja, awarded the player of the match in Birmingham, climbed two spots to reach seventh place. England’s Harry Brook also made notable progress, ascending five places to secure the 13th position.
Veteran Indian batter Virat Kohli dropped to 14th place, with Rishabh Pant being the only Indian in the top 10. Babar Azam, Pakistan’s all-format captain, occupies the fifth position in the rankings with 862 points.