DUBAI: Kane Williamson has become the first New Zealand batsman and 32nd overall to break the 900-point barrier in the ICC player rankings for Test batsmen following a stellar performance in the third Test against Pakistan, which helped his side win their first away series against the Asian side in 49 years.
Williamson scored 89 and 139 in Abu Dhabi last week, which set up New Zealand’s convincing 123-run victory over Pakistan. This performance not only helped Williamson to win the Player of the Match award, but also earn 37 points in the latest player rankings, which, in turn, has allowed him to leapfrog Australia’s Steve Smith into second position on a career-high 913 points.
Richard Hadlee, ICC’s Cricket Hall of Famer, is the only other New Zealand player — with bat or ball — to reach the 900-point mark in the ICC Test rankings. He reached 909 points with the ball following his five for 65 and six for 90 against Australia in Perth in November-December 1985.
While Williamson shone with the bat in Abu Dhabi and was richly rewarded, number-one ranked Virat Kohli managed only three and 34 in his side’s impressive 31-run victory over Australia at the picturesque Adelaide Oval.
As a result, Kohli has conceded 15 points to slip to 920 points, just seven points ahead of Williamson.
Azhar Ali and Asad Shafiq, who scored centuries for Pakistan in the first innings, have made small gains. Azhar has moved up two places to 10th, while Asad is now 21st after rising one place.
ICC Test player rankings: Batsmen (top 10): 1. Virat Kohli (Ind), 920 points; 2. Kane Williamson (NZ), 913; 3. Steve Smith (Aus), 901; 4. C Pujara (Ind), 846; 5. Joe Root (Eng), 807; 6. David Warner (Aus), 795; 7. D Karunaratne (SL), 753; 8. Dean Elgar (SA), 724; 9. Henry Nicholls (NZ), 709; 10. Azhar Ali (Pak), 708.
Bowlers (top 10): 1. Kagiso Rabada (SA), 882 points; 2. James Anderson (Eng), 874; 3. Vernon Philander (SA), 826; 4. M Abbas (Pak), 821; 5. Ravindra Jadeja (Ind), 804; 6. R Ashwin (Ind), 786; 7. Pat Cummins (Aus), 770; 8. Trent Boult (NZ), 764; 9. Yasir Shah (Pak), 757; 10. Jason Holder (Win), 751.
All-rounders (top five): 1. Shakib Al Hasan (Ban), 415 points; 2. Ravindra Jadeja (Ind), 392; 3. Vernon Philander (SA), 370; 4. Jason Holder (Win), 365; 5. Ben Stokes (Eng), 342.