Kohli jumps to second spot in Test rankings

DUBAI: India captain Virat Kohli moved up three places to grab second position among batsmen in the ICC Test Player Rankings, after registering his career-best score in the third and final Test against Sri Lanka, which ended in a draw in New Delhi on Wednesday.

Kohli’s first-innings knock of 243 was followed by 50 as he finished with 610 runs in the series, which India won 1-0.Kohli, who slammed back-to-back double-centuries and recorded three-figure score in three consecutive matches, started the series in sixth position but leapfrogged David Warner, Cheteshwar Pujara, Kane Williamson and Joe Root after a stupendous run which saw him average 152.50.

Though 45 points separate him from Australia captain Steve Smith, Kohli would be eyeing the chance of reaching the zenith in all three formats since he is the current No 1 in ODIs and T20Is.

Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting is the only batsman to have been at the top in all three formats at the same time -– in December-January 2005-06.

Though Smith enjoys a substantial lead over Kohli, the competition for second to fifth positions remains intense. Before this Test, only 11 points separated second-ranked Pujara from fifth-ranked Kohli. Following the latest performances, the gap has increased slightly with 28 points now separating second-ranked Kohli from fifth-ranked Williamson.

For Sri Lanka, captain Dinesh Chandimal gained eight places to take ninth position after finishing the series with 366 runs, the first time he has moved into the top 10.

All-rounder Angelo Mathews moved up seven places to 23rd position after scoring 111 in the first innings while Dhananjaya de Silva’s match-saving 119 in the second innings lifted him nine places to 47th position.