Dubai, Feb 7 (UNI) Jasprit Bumrah’s place as the best fast bowler in the world is confirmed following news that the India quick has claimed the No.1 spot on the latest ICC Men’s Test Bowler rankings.
Bumrah rises to the top for the first time on the back of his tremendous match figures of 9/91 during his side’s series-equalling 106-run victory over England in the second Test in Vizag, an effort that saw the right-arm pacer become the first quick from India claim the top Test ranking.
The nine-wicket haul saw Bumrah earn Player of the Match honours in the second Test and climb three places on the latest Test rankings for bowlers to claim top spot from teammate Ravichandran Ashwin.
Ashwin – who has held the premier ranking since March last year – managed just three wickets for India in that same match and drops two places to third on the updated rankings for Test bowlers, with South Africa pace spearhead Kagiso Rabada maintaining his place in second despite sitting out the Proteas’ Test series in New Zealand.
It is the first time Bumrah has held the top ranking, with the 30-year-old having never been previously higher than third despite a total of 10 five-wicket hauls for his country from 34 Test match appearances.
Two of those five-wicket hauls have come in Test matches in 2024 for Bumrah, with the India pacer collecting figures of 6/61 against South Africa in Cape Town at the start of the year and then an equally impressive spel of 6/45 in his most recent appearance against England.
Bumrah is just the fourth player from India – and first fast bowler – to top the bowling charts, with Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Bishan Bedi, the only players from the Asian country to have done so previously.
Bumrah isn’t the only player from India to make an eye-catching jump up the latest ICC rankings, with teammate Yashasvi Jaiswal also rewarded for his magnificent double century during the first innings of that Vizag Test with England.
Jaiswal helped setup the victory with a career-best 209 to start the match and the youngster climbed 37 places to 29th on the latest rankings for Test batsmen, with New Zealand veteran Kane Williamson still leading the way at the head of proceedings.
Sri Lanka spinner Prabath Jayasuriya jumps three places to sixth on the Test bowling ranks following his eight-wicket match haul in the one-off Test against Afghanistan, while compatriot Asitha Fernando improves seven spots to 34th after six scalps from the same match.
England’s Ben Stokes (fourth) and India’s Axar Patel (fifth) jump one place on the list for Test all-rounders following the Vizag Test, while there is some movement within the latest ODI rankings following the completion of Australia’s home series against the West Indies.
Spinner Adam Zampa rises one place to third behind fellow tweaker Keshav Maharaj (1st) and Josh Hazlewood (2nd) on the latest ODI bowling rankings, while teammate Sean Abbott rockets up 35 places to equal 33rd following his impressive series with the ball that netted six wickets.
Pakistan’s Babar Azam maintains his place at the top of the ODI batsman rankings in front of India trio Shubman Gill (second), Virat Kohli (third) and Rohit Sharma (fourth), while Abbott jumps 52 places to equal 18th on the list for all-rounders after also contributing 69 runs from one innings with the bat against the West Indies.
