News APP

NewsApp (Free)

Read news as it happens
Download NewsApp

Available on  gplay

Rediff.com  » Sports » Chanderpaul soars in Test rankings

Chanderpaul soars in Test rankings

June 17, 2008 17:01 IST
Get Rediff News in your Inbox:

The record books will show that Australia beat the West Indies 2-0, but those who witnessed it will know that the men from the Caribbean were competitive throughout the series and, perhaps, deserved a different final scoreline.

Playing against the undisputed Test kings, it was never going to be easy for eighth-ranked West Indies; but there were several positives to come out of the series for the home team and it can look ahead with a considerable amount of optimism and confidence.

Perhaps the brightest star in the West Indies' sky at present is player of the series Shivnarine Chanderpaul. Following another good match in Barbados he has gained three more places in the Reliance Mobile ICC Player Rankings for Test batsmen. He now sits second in what is the highest ranking of his career to date.

His statistics speak for themselves. In six innings Chanderpaul scored 442 runs at an average of 147.33, including two centuries and three fifties. His batting held the West Indies middle-order together and the fact he ended up not out on three of those six trips to the crease showed how difficult he was to dismiss.

Chanderpaul moves ahead of Australia's Ricky Ponting and Mike Hussey in the rankings and now sits just three ratings points behind top-ranked batsman Kumar Sangakkara, who moves top due to Hussey's indifferent form of late.

It is not the first time in his career that Sangakkara has been top of the pile, having achieved that feat earlier this year, and he is still some way off his best rating of 938 points that he managed against England in 2007.

Shortly, he will have another opportunity to impress as Sri Lanka plays host to India in a three-Test series during July and August.

But the 30-year-old left-hander will have to be at the top of his game to keep his lofty perch because the group is very tightly bunched with just 16 ratings points separating Sangakkara from South Africa's Jacques Kallis in sixth position.

While Hussey, Ponting and Andrew Symonds have lost ground in the rankings, it is not all bad news for Australia as Phil Jaques has gained seven places to 28th position in the batting list and fellow-opener Simon Katich has moved up 15 places to 42nd after the two put on 223 for the first wicket in Barbados.

Still making his way in Test cricket, 22-year-old Xavier Marshall is the biggest mover of the week, progressing 54 places to 82nd position following his fine knock of 85 in the second innings.

Another positive to come out of the latest rankings for the West Indies is Jerome Taylor. The Jamaican, who celebrates his 24th birthday on Sunday, has moved up one place to 12th in the Reliance Mobile ICC Player Rankings for Test bowlers and is currently enjoying the best rating of his career to date.

There is progress, too, for Fidel Edwards (up two places to 28th position), Dwayne Bravo (up four places to 30th) and Sulieman Benn (up 20 places to 76th), meaning the West Indies now has four bowlers in the top 30.

The bowling rankings are still headed by spinner Muttiah Muralidaran making it a batting and bowling double for Sri Lanka, with South Africa's Dale Steyn in second and Australia's Stuart Clark closing the gap in third position.

Bravo has also made an impact on the Reliance Mobile ICC Player Rankings for Test all-rounders, breaking into the top five. He moves up two places to fourth in the list following a good performance in Barbados where he scored 98 runs and took three wickets.

It is Bravo's highest all-rounder rating of his career so far and he is now just seven ratings points behind England's Andrew Flintoff who lies in third position. The list is headed by Kallis followed by New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori in second place.

Despite winning the series 2-0, Australia stays on 141 ratings points at the top of the Reliance Mobile ICC Test Championship following the conclusion of the series with the West Indies. It is 30 points clear of the next best, India, but then there are just five points separating Anil Kumble's team from Sri Lanka in fifth position.

Pakistan sits in sixth spot followed by New Zealand six points further back in seventh, the West Indies in eighth and Bangladesh ninth.

Get Rediff News in your Inbox:
Source: REUTERS
© Copyright 2024 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon.

INDIAN PREMIER LEAGUE 2024

INDIAN PREMIER LEAGUE 2024