Dravid returns to the top 20 in style
Rahul Dravid's man of the match performance in the Jamaica Test against the West Indies has helped him return to the top 20 of the Reliance ICC Player Rankings for Test batsmen which were released on Friday.
Dravid, who won the ICC Cricketer and ICC Test Player of the Year awards in 2004, scored a magnificent 112 in the second innings on a difficult Sabina Park track. This seven-hour classy innings set the platform for India's 63 runs victory which handed the tourists a 1-0 lead in the three-Test series.
As a result, Dravid has earned 45 ratings points which has lifted him nine places to 20th position. This is his best position since November 2010 when he slipped out of the top 20 following the Nagpur Test against New Zealand.
Also on the charge is left-handed batsman Suresh Raina who has moved up 26 places to 61st spot after his contributions of 82 and 27 while West Indies opener Adrian Barath has rocketed 29 places to 62nd spot after his scores of 64 and 38.
Batsmen losing ground in the latest rankings include Shivnarine Chanderpaul in eighth (down by one place), VVS Laxman in 13th (down by five places), MS Dhoni in 38th (down by two places), Ramnaresh Sarwan in 39th (down by two places) and Brendan Nash in 52nd (down by five places).
South Africa's Jacques Kallis is now in sole possession of the coveted number-one position as Sachin Tendulkar has slipped to second place. A player loses one per cent of his ratings for every Test he misses. This means Tendulkar will lose more points as he will also not figure in the remaining two Tests but will still manage to enter next month's Test series against England in second position.
In the Reliance ICC Player Rankings for Test bowlers, India's fast bowler Ishant Sharma has moved up three places to 11th position after figures of 3-29 and 3-81.
West Indies wrist spinner Devendra Bishoo has maintained his upward movement. This time he has gained 12 places after match figures of 7-140 which has put him in 49th position. Bishoo is still in the qualification period (a bowler qualifies for a full rating when he reaches 100 Test wickets) which means he can potentially improve his rankings further depending how he performs in the remaining two Tests.
The bowling table is headed by Dale Steyn of South Africa with England's pair of Graeme Swann and James Anderson in second and third positions, respectively.
The player rankings will now be updated at the end of the second Test between West Indies and India which will be played in Barbados from 28 June to 2 July.