Press Trust of India
London, July 18: Leg-spinner Yasir Shah became the first Pakistani bowler in 20 years to top the International Cricket Council (ICC) Test rankings after his heroics in the Lord’s Test victory against England. Mushtaq Ahmed was the last bowler from Pakistan to top the rankings since December 1996.
The 30-year-old, who picked up 10 wickets at Lord’s to guide the visitors to a 75-run win in the first Test Sunday, is followed by Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and the England pace duo James Anderson and Stuart Broad.
Yasir’s first innings figures of 6/72 were the best recorded by a visiting spinner against England at Lord’s since Sid Pegler’s 7/65 for South Africa in 1912.
Anderson, who missed the first Test with a shoulder injury, dropped down to third, according to an ICC statement Monday.
Australia’s Steve Smith maintains his top spot in the Test batsman rankings ahead of New Zealand’s Kane Williamson. Australia and India currently take the top two places in the Test team rankings, while Pakistan and England are third and fourth respectively.
