Virat Kohli jumps to 9th position in ICC Rankings for Test batters, only Indian in the top 10

India's Virat Kohli has climbed to No. 9 in the ICC Rankings for Test batters following an impressive 76-run knock in the second innings of the Boxing Day Test against South Africa in Centurion. Kohli jumped four spots and occupies the ninth spot as of Wednesday, January 3.

India captain Rohit Sharma, on the other hand, has dropped to 14th spot, moving down four places. Sharma failed to get going in the first Test of the ongoing South Africa series, registering scores of 5 and 0.

It is worth mentioning that Virat Kohli is at the No. 3 spot in the ICC Rankings for ODI batters after a breathtaking campaign in 2023. The right-hander amassed 1377 runs in 27 innings at an average of 72.47, including six centuries and eight fifties.

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Virat Kohli was India's lone warrior in the second innings of the Boxing Day Test against South Africa

India went down without a fight in the first Test of the two-match series against South Africa in Centurion.

The visitors were asked to bat first after losing the toss on the seam-friendly surface. India were off to a shaky start before Virat Kohli provided some stability with a 38-run knock. Thanks to KL Rahul's gutsy innings of 101, they were able to register a decent total of 245 runs.

South Africa, on the other hand, scored 408 runs, thanks to Dean Elgar's (185) and Marco Jansen's (84*) batting exploits. The Men in Blue's struggle with the bat continued, as they were bundled out for a paltry score of 131 in the second innings. Kohli was the only Indian batter to cross the 30-run mark in the innings, finishing with 76 runs.

The Proteas won the match comprehensively by an innings and 32 runs to go 1-0 up in the two-match series. It ended India's hopes of securing their maiden Test series win on South African soil.

The second and final Test of the series is set to be played at Newlands in Cape Town from February 03 to 07.