Stokes moves up to career-best rankings

Dubai: England all-rounder Ben Stokes has moved up to take career-best positions in both batting and bowling, in the MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings after a fine show in the third Test against South Africa at The Oval, which his side won by 239 runs on Monday to take a 2-1 lead in the four-match series.

Stokes has moved up 12 places to joint-25th position in the rankings for batsmen with scores of 112 and 31, while also gaining two places to reach 19th position in the list for bowlers after grabbing one for 26 and two for 51. His effort also sees him overtake South Africa’s Vernon Philander to take fifth position in the list of all-rounders.

In the latest rankings, which also take into account performances in the first Test at Galle in which India defeated Sri Lanka by 304 runs on Saturday to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series, saw other England players make notable gains too.

Jonny Bairstow has gained three slots to reach ninth position with scores of 36 and 63, opening batsman Alastair Cook has moved up three places to 12th position with scores of 88 and seven, while in the bowlers’ rankings, James Anderson (up one place to joint-third) and Moeen Ali (up one place to 18th) have made upward movement.

Debutants Tom Westley (70th) and Toby Roland-Jones (54th) have entered the rankings in style among batsmen and bowlers, respectively.

For South Africa, left-handed opener Dean Elgar’s innings of eight and 136 have lifted him three places to 15th position while left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj has gained four slots and attained a career-best 22ndposition after his four wickets at The Oval.

India opener Shikhar Dhawan’s scores of 190 and 14 have lifted the left-hander 21 slots to 39th position, while off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has leapfrogged Sri Lanka’s Rangana Herath to wrest back the second position among bowlers to again make it a 1-2 for India with Ravindra Jadeja retaining the top spot.

Pace bowler Mohammad Shami has gained one slot to reach 23rd rank.

Sri Lanka all-rounder Angelo Mathews has gained two places to reach 17th position after scores of 83 and two at Galle, while batsman Dimuth Karunaratne (up three places to 36th) and pace bowler Nuwan Pradeep (up three places to a career-best 30th) are the others to move up the rankings.