Two Pakistan players rise in latest ICC Test rankings

Two Pakistani players have made notable moves in the latest ICC Men’s Test Rankings following recent performances, with spinner Noman Ali and Test vice-captain Saud Shakeel leading the way.

Noman Ali has climbed two spots to secure the fourth position in the ICC Test bowling rankings, entering the top five with 806 points. Meanwhile, Saud Shakeel has moved up one place to break into the top 10 among Test batters — now ranked ninth — continuing his rise as a key figure in Pakistan’s red-ball setup.

However, not all ranking updates were positive for Pakistan. ODI captain Mohammad Rizwan, Test skipper Shan Masood, and young batter Abdullah Shafique each slipped one spot in the batting charts. Rizwan now sits at 16th with 671 points, Shan is ranked 45th with 542, and Abdullah is 51st with 520 points.

Former captain Babar Azam and middle-order batter Salman Ali Agha have held on to their previous positions at 21st and 31st, respectively.

In the bowling department, Sajid Khan and Shaheen Shah Afridi remain steady at 22nd and 23rd. Naseem Shah also retains his place at 37th, where he is now joined by South Africa’s Lungi Ngidi and Sri Lanka’s Lahiru Kumara.

Pakistan’s other bowlers include Mohammad Abbas (29th), Abrar Ahmed (52nd), Khurram Shahzad (64th), Aamer Jamal (72nd), Mir Hamza (93rd), Salman Ali Agha (95th), and Zahid Mahmood (97th).

Across the rankings, England’s Joe Root continues to lead the Test batting charts, followed by Harry Brook and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson in second and third, respectively.

South Africa’s Aiden Markram, who was named Player of the Match in the WTC final at Lord’s, climbed seven places to 11th — just two points shy of the top 10. Markram’s century in the final also helped him surge 44 places in the all-rounders' rankings.

His teammate David Bedingham made a strong impression as well, jumping 17 places to 40th in the batting rankings, where he now shares the spot with Australia’s Cameron Green.

On the bowling side, South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada holds firm in second place, just behind India’s Jasprit Bumrah, who remains at the top. Australia’s Pat Cummins is ranked third.

Veteran pacer Mitchell Starc also saw gains after his performance in the WTC final, moving up to 10th in both the bowling and all-rounder rankings. His teammate Beau Webster, who top-scored for Australia in the first innings, climbed 13 places in the batting charts.

Elsewhere, players from the Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 also made significant jumps. Netherlands batter Michael Levitt climbed across the board — 22 places in ODI batting, 21 in bowling, and 27 in the all-rounder rankings. He also rose 11 places in the T20I batting list, now sitting at 30th, just behind Pakistan’s Mohammad Haris.

Levitt’s teammate Noah Croes advanced 20 spots in the ODI batting rankings following his match-winning half-century against Scotland, while Nepal’s Aarif Sheikh moved up 13 places after a key knock against the Netherlands.