DUBAI: After a stellar performance in the just-concluded Indore Test against Bangladesh, Indian pacer Mohammed Shami on Sunday achieved his career-best position in the latest ICC Test Rankings. Shami’s bowling figures of 3 for 27 and 4 for 31 lifted him eight places to seventh position. His 790 rating points are the third best for an India pace bowler with only Kapil Dev (877) and Jasprit Bumrah (832) having recorded more points. Meanwhile, opener Mayank Agarwal climbed to the 11th spot , his career-best position, after the match winning innings of 243.
The 28-year-old has reached 691 rating points after scoring 858 runs in his first eight Tests. Agarwal finished just outside the top ten, which includes team-mates Virat Kohli at No 2, Cheteshwar Pujara at No 4, Ajinkya Rahane at No 5 and Rohit Sharma at No 10. Only seven batsmen have scored more runs than Agarwal in their first eight Tests – Don Bradman (1210), Everton Weekes (968), Sunil Gavaskar (938), Mark Taylor (906), George Headley (904), Frank Worrell (890) and Herbert Sutcliffe (872). All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja jumped four slots to reach joint-35th position among batsmen while pacers Ishant Sharma (20th) and Umesh Yadav (22nd) have moved up one place each. Ravichandran Ashwin remained in the top 10 for bowlers, while moving back to fourth position among all-rounders.
For Bangladesh, Mushfiqur Rahim’s knocks of 43 and 64 helped him gain five places and reach 30th position while Liton Das has moved up from 92nd to 86th position. Pacer Abu Jayed, who took four wickets in the first test, advanced 18 slots to take 62nd position after only six Tests. With the comprehensive win and the 1-0 lead, India strengthened their position at the top of the Championship table with 300 points. They are yet to concede a point, having gained a full 120 points each in their three-Test home series against South Africa and two-test series in the West Indies. Next-best are Sri Lanka and New Zealand with 60 points each, followed by Australia and England who are on 56 apiece. West Indies, South Africa, Bangladesh are yet to open their accounts. Pakistan will play their first game of the WTC against Australia later this week. (AGENCIES)