ICC Test Rankings: Ajinkya Rahane makes big gains, Australia batters claim rare top 3 spots

On Wednesday, India's Ajinkya Rahane made a remarkable comeback, climbing to the 37th position in the rankings chart. Meanwhile, Shardul Thakur also rose to the 94th position among batters. Despite not featuring in the World Test Championship final, Ravichandran Ashwin maintained his top spot among Test bowlers.

In a rare achievement, batters from Australia occupy the top three places in the rankings, with Steve Smith and Travis Head joining top-ranked Marnus Labuschagne following their centuries in the WTC final win against India at The Oval.

Despite India's 209-run loss in the marquee match, Rahane's scores of 89 and 46 helped him return to the rankings chart in the 37th position. Shardul, who scored a half-century in the first innings, moved up six places.The dashing wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant, who is currently recovering following a car accident, remains the highest-ranked Indian at number 10. Meanwhile, skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are static on the 12th and 13th spots, respectively.

Veteran off-spinner Ashwin has maintained his position as the top-ranked Test bowler. Meanwhile, fellow spinner Ravindra Jadeja has held on to his ninth spot. However, the injured Jasprit Bumrah has dropped two spots to eighth after not playing a Test match since July 2022.

In the batting rankings, Marnus Labuschagne continues to hold on to his number-one position with an impressive 903 rating points. Steve Smith has advanced one place to second position after scoring 121 and 34 in recent matches. The other centurion of the WTC final, Travis Head, has lifted three places to a career-best third position after scoring 163 and 18. The race for the second spot is very close, with Smith on 885 rating points, Head on 884, and New Zealand's Kane Williamson on 883.

It is worth noting that having batters from the same side taking the top three places is a rare occurrence. The last time this happened in the Test batting rankings was in 1984, when West Indies players Gordon Greenidge, Clive Lloyd, and Larry Gomes were at the top of the list.

In other rankings, Australian wicketkeeper Alex Carey has progressed 11 places to 36th after scoring 48 and 66 not out. Spinner Nathan Lyon has moved up two places to sixth, and Scott Boland has moved up five places to 36th after finishing with five wickets each in the match.

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