Indian skipper Virat Kohli will be having a lot of responsibility to cope up with, in the forthcoming Test series upcoming five-match Test series against England starting on Thursday at Birmingham. Apart from the much talked about redeeming opportunity for Kohli after a forgettable 2014 tour, Kohli has the chance to leapfrog Australia’s Steve Smith as the number one Test batsman in ICC rankings with a strong performance in the series.
Virat is currently standing at the number two position in the ICC rankings with 903 points, only 26 behind Smith (929), who has banned from international cricket for one year for his involvement in a ball-tampering incident. The Indian skipper will also be looking to avoid a series whitewash against England, the fifth-ranked side in the Test rankings.
Currently, England is standing at the number five with 97 rating points and can jump to number two surpassing South Africa (106), Australia (106) and New Zealand (102) with a 10-point rise to 107 points, reducing the pre-series gap with top-ranked India from 28 points to just five points.
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In contrast, if India goes with full throttle and displays their strength and prowess which has helped them to reach the numero uno position in the rankings, then they will further strengthen their grip on the top spot. If India wins 5-0, then they will rise to 129 points and England will drop to sixth place on 94 points.
The English fast bowler James Anderson will also aim to defend his number-one ranking. Apart from Kohli and Anderson, both the sides comprise players who feature prominently in the Test player rankings and they will be hoping to make upward movements. This makes the upcoming series a perfect recipe for entertaining, interesting and enthralling red ball cricket.
Amongst the batsmen, both England and India have five each inside the top-50. From England, Joe Root is ranked third (48 points behind Kohli), Alastair Cook 13th, Jonny Bairstow 16th, Ben Stokes 28th and Moeen Ali 43rd, while India’s Cheteshwar Pujara is sixth, followed by Lokesh Rahul 18th, Ajinkya Rahane 19th, Murali Vijay 23rd and Shikhar Dhawan 24th.
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Amongst the bowlers and apart from Anderson, Stuart Broad is the other bowler who features inside the top-30 in 12th position.
In contrast, India boasts six bowlers inside the top-30, including two spinners in Ravindra Jadeja (third) and Ravichandran Ashwin (fifth), and four fast bowlers, namely Mohammed Shami (17th), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (25th), Ishant Sharma (26th) and Umesh Yadav (28th).
The Test player rankings will be updated following the conclusion of the Edgbaston Test, while the Test team rankings will be updated following the conclusion of the fifth and final Test at The Oval.
