Noman breaks into Test bowling top five

LAHORE: Pakistan’s left-arm spinner Noman Ali has achieved a career milestone by breaking into the top five of the ICC Men’s Test Bowling Rankings, following his match-winning performance in the recent Test series against the West Indies.

With 806 rating points, Noman now sits at fourth, becoming only the 12th Pakistani bowler to surpass the 800-point mark in Test cricket. The 38-year-old’s rise comes on the back of a 10-wicket haul in Multan, where his precision and control helped Pakistan level the series.

His leap in the rankings coincides with dips from Australia’s Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon, both of whom slipped a spot each. On the batting front, Saud Shakeel continues his upward trajectory, climbing to seventh with 739 points. However, Mohammad Rizwan dropped to 16th, while Babar Azam held steady at 21st.

Other Pakistani batters in the top 100 include Salman Ali Agha (31st), Shan Masood (45th), and Abdullah Shafique (51st). India’s Jasprit Bumrah remains the world’s top-ranked Test bowler, followed by Kagiso Rabada and Pat Cummins, while Joe Root continues to lead the batting charts ahead of Harry Brook and Kane Williamson.

Among other Pakistani bowlers, Sajid Khan and Shaheen Afridi retained their 21st and 23rd positions, respectively, with Mohammad Abbas at 29th. Naseem Shah now shares 37th place with South Africa’s Lungi Ngidi, who impressed in the WTC final at Lord’s.