Babar Azam faces downward shift in latest ICC Test rankings

Australia batter Travis Head’s match-winning century in the first Test against the West Indies has lifted him seven places to fifth in the ICC Men’s Test Player Rankings while fast bowler Josh Hazlewood’s nine wickets see him advance three places to fourth among bowlers.

Head, who was named in the ICC Test and ODI Teams of the Year for 2023 earlier this week, scored 119 to be named Player of the Match in the Adelaide Test which was the first game of their two-match ICC World Test Championship series that Australia won by 10 wickets. 

Babar Azam, who experienced a challenging performance in the recently concluded three-match Test series, where the national team suffered a 3-0 defeat, is also witnessing a decline in rankings. As of the latest Test rankings, he currently holds the 10th position with 768 points.

Head is now three places away from his career-best second position attained in July last year during the Ashes. Hazlewood, who returned hauls of four for 44 and five for 35 in Adelaide, also has a career-best second position achieved in February 2017.

West Indies batter Kirk McKenzie has progressed 61 places to 85th after scores of 50 and 26 while Shamar Joseph has entered the top 100 of both the batting and bowling rankings after an impressive debut. Joseph scored 36 and 15 batting at number 11 to be ranked joint-99th while his five-wicket haul helped him enter the bowling rankings in joint-92nd position.

The T20I Rankings see New Zealand batter Finn Allen continue his upward passage, moving up nine places to seventh after a knock of 137 in the third T20I of their five-match series against Pakistan in Dunedin that was won 4-1 by the home side. 

Tim Seifert (up three places to 20th) and Daryl Mitchell (up 10 places to 27th) are other New Zealand batters to move up the batting rankings while Tim Southee is up to 11th among bowlers.

Captain Rohit Sharma and left-hander Rinku Singh have also made significant gains after helping India complete a 3-0 win over Afghanistan in the Bengaluru match that was decided after two Super Overs. Sharma’s 121 not out has lifted him 19 places to 49th position while Singh’s 69 not out has taken him from 70th to 31st position.

Others to move up the T20I rankings just over four months before the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup are Afghanistan batters Rahmanullah Gurbaz (up two places to 19th) and Ibrahim Zadran (up nine places to 26th, and Shaheen Afridi of Pakistan (up three places to 21st among bowlers).