ICC Test Rankings: Marnus Labuschagne dethrones Joe Root to become No.1 batter

Australian batting sensation Marnus Labuschagne has leapfrogged England star Joe Root to acquire the number one spot amongst batters in the latest released Test rankings by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on Thursday.

Notably, Labuschagne exhibited his ‘A-Game’ in the recently-concluded first Test against West Indies in Perth. The right-handed batter scored 204 in the first innings and 104* in the second and became just the eighth player to record a century and a double-ton in the same Test. The splendid knocks gave Labuschagne 50 rating points, helping him regain his position at the top for the first time since June this year. He has advanced to 935 rating points, just one behind his previous best of 936.

Further, if Labuschange replicates his performance in the ongoing second Test in Adelaide, it can take him past the likes of Virat Kohli and Viv Richards, who have all-time high ratings of 937 and 938, respectively.

Root, on the other hand, did not just lose his place at the top, he dropped three places to fourth position, with Steven Smith and Babar Azam in second and third, respectively, after registering scores of 23 and 73 in the Rawalpindi Test. Smith scored an unbeaten 200 and 20 against West Indies in the opening Test, while Babar hit 136 and 4 against England in the first Test.

On the bowling front, veteran England pacer James Anderson marched into the top three after bagging five wickets on a challenging track in Rawalpindi. His teammate, Ollie Robinson, who was the Player of the Match for his five-wicket haul, advanced seven spots to reach the eighth position. Australian skipper Pat Cummins continues to lead the charts, but that could change as he has been ruled out of the ongoing Adelaide Test due to a quad strain.