Aussie breakthrough as Cummins goes top

Pat Cummins has become the first Australian since Glenn McGrath 13 years ago to be the No.1 ranked Test bowler in the world, claiming top spot in the latest ICC update.

Cummins and England’s Jimmy Anderson have both moved ahead of South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada after the Proteas' shock loss to Sri Lanka in Durban, with the Australian claiming top spot, Anderson moving to second and Rabada dropping down to third.

Rabada finished with match figures of 3-145 in the first Test at Kingsmead.

McGrath was the last Australian to be ranked No.1, achieving the feat in February 2006, with Mitchell Johnson – who reached No.2 in 2009 – coming closest since then.

Sri Lanka’s Kusal Perera has jumped an extraordinary 58 places in the batting rankings after his match-winning ton in Durban, which is already being rated as one of the best in the modern era.

The left-hander scored 153no out of Sri Lanka’s 304 as they stunned the Proteas to win the first Test by just one wicket, seeing Perera move from 98th to 40th spot in the rankings.

Proteas skipper Faf du Plessis moved to equal 10th thanks to his scores of 35 and 90 at Kingsmead, the first time he’s been among the top 10 batsmen.

Quinton de Kock, meanwhile, moved up four spots to be equal eighth, while India’s Virat Kohli retained top spot. 

ICC Batting Rankings

1) Virat Kohli – 922 points

2) Kane Williamson – 897

3) Cheteshwar Pujara – 881

4) Steve Smith – 857

=5) Joe Root – 763

=5) Henry Nicholls – 763

7) David Warner – 756

=8) Quinton de Kock – 710

=8) Aiden Markram – 710

=10) Dimuth Karunaratne – 688

=10) Faf du Plessis – 688

ICC Bowling Rankings

1) Pat Cummins – 878

2) Jimmy Anderson – 862

3) Kagiso Rabada – 849

4) Vernon Philander – 821

5) Ravindra Jadeja – 794

6) Trent Boult – 771

=7) Jason Holder – 770

=7) Mohammad Abbas – 770

9) Tim Southee – 767

10) Ravichandran Ashwin – 763