Australia retain top spot in ICC Test rankings, Pakistan rise to sixth

DUBAI: Australia have retained the top position in the latest annual ICC Test rankings update, while Pakistan rose one place to sixth, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said on Friday.

South Africa remain second, followed by India in third, England in fourth and New Zealand in fifth, according to the updated standings.

Pakistan moved up from seventh to sixth, overtaking Sri Lanka, marking a marginal improvement in the longest format of the game.

The annual update is based on a weighted system that rates more recent results more heavily than older matches, the ICC said.

Australia and South Africa retained their top two positions after gaining three rating points each, sitting on 131 and 119 points respectively.

India are third on 104 points, ahead of England on 102, with New Zealand fifth on 101.

England dropped one place after losing seven rating points, largely due to the removal of earlier results from the calculation window, including series wins that fell outside the updated assessment period.

Pakistan’s rise to sixth on 89 points came as Sri Lanka dropped to seventh on 86 points following the latest recalibration of results in the rating cycle.

Ireland dropped out of the rankings as they have not played the required minimum number of Test matches during the rating period, the ICC said.

The ICC said further updates to the men’s and women’s T20I team rankings will be released on May 5, followed by the men’s ODI rankings update on May 7.