As a result of South Africa’s capitulation to Stuart Broad on the third day of the 3rd Test at Johannesburg, India will be catapulted to top position in the ICC Test Rankings list when it is updated at the end of the series. South Africa will drop down to third place, below India and Australia.
India will be on 110 points, with second-placed Australia on 109 as a result of their drubbing of West Indies.
This is the first time India will reach the zenith of the rankings since 2011 when they lost it to England. It has been a remarkable turnaround for India this year, having managed to win just 1 Test in 2014.
It is also a good omen for not-long-ago appointed captain Virat Kohli, who will have taken India to the summit of the Test format in about a year of his taking charge. He will have taken India from being No.7 in the rankings to the very top.
England, who India have to thank for this gift, will remain on fifth place, still behind Pakistan and the three top teams.
South Africa’s dramatic fall
The 4th Test at Centurion will have lessened bearing now that the series has already been decided in England’s favour 2-0. However, if they lose that match as well, South Africa will drop down even further to fourth place below Pakistan.
South Africa are currently on a nine-match winless streak in Tests, and the top ranked team are suddenly undergoing a rapid slide. The hosts last emerged triumphant against West Indies at Cape Town.
South Africa, who have been on top of the rankings for over a year, have had a terrible year in the longest format of the game. The Hashim Amla led side drew 0-0 in Bangladesh in July, where they were a little unlucky with rain playing spoilsport. They then went visited India, where they had to endure a humiliating 3-0 defeat at the hands of Virat Kohli and co.
With Amla stepping down from captaincy in the middle of the series, and a match-fixing cloud hanging over their country’s domestic cricket, the skies over Africa are currently very glum.
Currently set to drop down to third, the Proteas are expected to play out of their skin in the Centurion Test to not drop down further and to salvage some pride.
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