Joe Root Becomes Number 1 Ranked Test Batsman After His Ton in Ashes First Test, R Ashwin Retains Top Spot Despite WTC Final Snub

Former England Test captain Joe Root has risen to the top of ICC Men’s Test rankings for batsmen following his stellar show in the first Test of Ashes 2023. In the latest released rankings on Thursday, Root rose to the pinnacle, while former number 1 Marnus Labuschagne dropped to third place.

New Zealand’s talismanic batter and white-ball captain Kane Williamson, rose to second place ahead of Labuschagne. Root smashed a century in the first innings of the Edgbaston Test scoring 118 runs on Day 1 before Ben Stokes decided to declare his side’s innings at 393/8.

In the second inning, Root smashed 46 runs but narrowly missed out on a fifty as England lost the match to Australia by 2 wickets. Despite the defeat, Root has been rewarded for his stellar show as he jumped five places in the latest ICC Test rankings pipping Labuschagne who was at the top for the past six months.

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Following a slow start to the year 2023, the Australian batter fell down to third following scores of 0 and 13 against England, whereas Williamson jumped two places and rose to second place.

Meanwhile, the number 1 ranked Test bowler Ravichandran Ashwin retained his place at the top of the pile despite not featuring during the World Test Championship final against Australia earlier this month.

Ravindra Jadeja continues to lead the way as the number 1 ranked all-rounder in red-ball cricket.

Following the defeat in the first Test, fellow Australian batters Travis Head and Steve Smith both lost ground. Head dropped to fourth, losing one place while Smith dropped four berths to land in sixth place.

Meanwhile the player of the match during the Edgbaston Test, Usman Khawaja who also scored a century rose to seventh place, the highest in his career so far.

Ashwin continues to lead the way for the bowlers ahead of England’s James Anderson while Kagiso Rabada moved up to third place ahead of Australian captain Pat Cummins.

The second Test of Ashes 2023 is slated to be played from 28 June to 2 July at the iconic Lord’s Stadium.