Asad joins top-20 club

­KARACHI: A Man-of-the-Match 137-run knock in the second innings against hosts Australia in Brisbane helped Asad Shafiq earn praise from every corner of the cricket world and jump five places in ICC Player Rankings for Test Batsmen.

After failing to make an impact in the first inning, scoring only two runs, Shafiq led a remarkable fight-back in the second innings when Pakistan were chasing a mammoth total of 490. Pakistan were eventually bowled out for 450.

Shafiq rose to 20th spot in the Test batsmen’s ranking.

Seasoned Younis Khan moved up one place to eighth position after scoring 65 in the second innings following a duck in the first.

Azhar Ali also gained one slot to reach 16th rank.

Australia batsman Usman Khawaja reached a career-best 18th rank after knocks of four and 74.

Pacer Wahab Riaz of Pakistan jumped two places to a career-best 24th rank after picking five wickets in the Brisbane Test.

Australia pace bowler Mitchell Starc moved up two slots to a career-best sixth position. Australia’s Jackson Bird was up five places to 48th.