ICC Test Ranking: Shaheens made significant move in recent rankings

• Babar becomes the only batsman to be in the top 3 of all formats.
• Shaheen enters the top 3 of bowlers rankings.
• Shafique moves to the 16th spot after a spectacular inning against Sri Lanka.

In the most recently released ICC Test ranking, Pakistan skipper Babar Azam inched closer to the top Test rating, bringing him one step closer to his goal of becoming the best batsman in all three forms of the game.

🥇 in ODIs
🥇 in T20Is
🥉 in Tests@babarazam258 rises to third in the ICC Test Rankings to become the only batter to feature inside the top-three across all formats 🤩 pic.twitter.com/XTgYYTLGAG

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) July 27, 2022

While the 28-year-old already has the top spot in both white-ball formats, the 27-year-old is still behind England’s Joe Root in the Test rankings, according to the ICC’s latest update announced on Wednesday.

Babar moves up one spot to third overall and to a career-high rating of 874 points as a result of his magnificent century in the 1st Test of Pakistan’s ongoing series against Sri Lanka in Galle.

Babar contributed over 55 percent of Pakistan’s first-innings runs in that Test, contributing 119 runs to a team total of 218 that ultimately kept Pakistan in contention with Sri Lanka’s first-innings total of 222.

Babar recently stated that it was his desire to become the top-ranked batsman in all three formats of the game, and this elevation in the rankings brings him one step closer to attaining that extremely difficult goal.

The in-form skipper was not the only Pakistan player to make a notable move in the most recent rankings; standout pacer Shaheen Afridi also climbed one spot on the list for Test bowlers.

Afridi took four wickets in the first innings of the 1st Test against Sri Lanka, which propelled him above India’s Jasprit Bumrah and into third place among bowlers in the ICC Test ranking.

Pakistan opener Abdullah Shafique was named Player of the Match for his match-winning century in the second innings of that Galle Test. His 671 rating points propelled him 23 places to 16th overall in the batter rankings. India’s Sunil Gavaskar (692) and Australia’s Donald Bradman (693) are the only batsmen with more runs after six Tests (687). Shafique’s 671 runs are the most scored by a Pakistani batsman after six Tests, surpassing Saeed Ahmed’s 614 runs.

Following scores of 76 and 94*, Sri Lankan right-handed batsman Dinesh Chandimal advances 11 spots to 18th.

Prabath Jayasuriya becomes the fourth-highest bowler after two Tests after he climbs 11 spots to 44th position with 481 points, following Narendra Hirwani (519), Alec Bedser (500), and Bob Massie (494).