After nearly 39 years, three batters from the same team have occupied the top three places in the Test rankings

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Jun-2023

Travis Head and Steven Smith occupy the second and third positions in the ICC Test rankings for batters•AFP/Getty Images

Australia have a one-two-three at the top of the ICC Test rankings for batters, with Travis Head moving three places to third spot, behind Marnus Labuschagne at No. 1 and the second-placed Steven Smith. The last time three batters from the same team occupied the top three places in the Test rankings was in December 1984, when Gordon Greenidge (810), Clive Lloyd (787), and Larry Gomes (773) from West Indies were at the top.Head top-scored with a match-defining 163 against India in the World Test Championship final at The Oval. He came in at 76 for 3 on the first day and lifted Australia to 469. Smith, who also scored a hundred in the first innings, and Head put on a 285-run stand for the fourth wicket to give Australia a strong total. India eventually fell short by 209 runs as Australia clinched their maiden WTC title.ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Wicketkeeper-batter Alex Carey, who scored a valuable 48 and 66 not out down the order, gained 11 places to occupy the 36th position. India’s top-ranked batters from the current lot are Rohit Sharma at 12th and Virat Kohli at 13th, while Rishabh Pant is 10th.Among bowlers, offspinner Nathan Lyon’s five wickets in the match helped him move two places to joint-sixth, with England quick Ollie Robinson. Though Lyon bowled only four overs and picked up a wicket in the first innings, his 4 for 41 in the second innings helped bowl India out for 234. His team-mate Scott Boland moved up five places to 36th, four spots ahead of India’s Mohammed Siraj, who picked up five wickets in the final.R Ashwin, despite being left out of the XI, remains the No. 1 Test bowler. There were no changes in the top 10 of allrounder rankings where Ravindra Jadeja is on top and Ashwin second. The only other Indian in the top 10 is Axar Patel (fourth) and the two Australians in the top lot are Mitchell Starc (eighth) and Pat Cummins (10th).