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ICC rankings
England given Test ranking boost
ESPNcricinfo staff
July 14, 2012
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England's gap at the top of the ICC Test rankings has increased after the annual update of the table, but they can still be overhauled if South Africa win the series that starts on July 19.
Following the refresh to the table, which sees results before 2009 wiped off to give more emphasis on recent form, South Africa have slipped to third behind Australia - that is partly due to a lack of recent Test action for them. However, any margin of victory against England over the three Tests will see them reach top spot.
For England any victory will also see them hold onto the No. 1 position they attained last year by whitewashing India, but they can also maintain their ranking with a drawn series. England are currently in 122 points with South Africa on 113.
South Africa, though, are unperturbed by their shift. "It was the only way we were looking at it, that we have to win the series to go No.1," Russell Domingo, the assistant coach, said. "So it doesn't make a difference to us where we are ranked now."
Australia are currently sandwiched between the two teams, following their successful run in Test cricket under Michael Clarke. Since he took on the captaincy from Ricky Ponting they have beaten Sri Lanka away, drawn in South Africa, drawn at home to New Zealand, whitewashed India and beaten West Indies in the Caribbean.
South Africa's fall to third is because, annually, the oldest results are no longer counted - in this case from 2008-09 - and it was in that period that they won both in England and in Australia. At the same time England's ranking has improved because that home defeat to South Africa and the away defeats in India and West Indies are no longer counted in the rankings calculations.
Elsewhere, India and Pakistan have changed places. Pakistan, despite a 1-0 defeat in the three-Test series that finished in Sri Lanka on Thursday, have moved up to fourth and MS Dhoni's side, No. 1 this time last year, are now down in fifth place.
For the full rankings tables click here.
© ESPN EMEA Ltd.
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Simple answer is to get the Test championship going every 2 years !
Posted by JG2704 on (July 17, 2012, 20:43 GMT)@Meety - Re doing it the boxing way - I would hate that. The problem is the lack of opportunity and I really don't think it would reflect who the true number 1 is. I mean it also depends where you take it from. If you took it from when Australie were number 1 then I guess it would be SA , but then all the non SA fans would be moaning about how many home series they've played.If you did it since that period then SL would just have become number 1 and how can that be fair when in their previous 2 home series they drew with Eng , lost to Australia and then lost to Eng away last year? You'd also get teams who avoid each other and if you were purely doing it in turn teams like Aus,SA,Eng (depending on who is number 1) could have to wait years to get an opportunity while teams like WI and NZ leapfrog them. I honestly think the only fullproof way of doing it is have every series be the same duration (whether it be 3 or 4 tests) and each team play each other home and away.
Posted by rafhuss on (July 17, 2012, 14:51 GMT)England still lacking the ability to play outside home country, while Southafrica has won everywhere. So this series willprove S.A that whether they can win outside home vs Top side. If they do so then they top ranking.
Posted by Yevghenny on (July 17, 2012, 14:20 GMT)A "Title" is a great idea. Out of the top 3, #2 and #3 have a test series, and then get to host the title holder. The title holder should be able to perform away from home as well as home, so if they retain this for any period of time, you can truly call them the best side
Posted by Swerver on (July 17, 2012, 13:58 GMT)Would SA gain enough points from a T20 series win to move ahead on those rankings? Would that mean SA has an opportunity to go to number 1 on all three lists by the end of September? Even to a Safrican that sounds farfetched; very smile worthy, but a little fantastical.
Posted by Meety on (July 17, 2012, 12:23 GMT)@jmcilhinney - the example you used "...Pakistan could now refuse to play England again because they want to keep that 3-0..." has potential to occur, but if a nation was so bloody minded to try this ploy then obviously some alternate factor must come in, i.e forfeit maybe? (plausible as long as Darryl Hair is not an employee of the ICC!). @jmcilhinney/jg2704 - I actually would like a totally different concept brought in, to compliment a Test championship & Rankings. A while back there was a link on this site, to what I can only describe as the Title Belt of Test cricket. Along the lines of Boxing, if you beat the Title Holder, you become the Champ. It is easy to trace back from the beginning of Test history & track who was the Champ. Obviously Oz & Eng had a mortgage on it until the 1950s, the WIndies were the Champs for 20 years, briefly Zimbabwe took it off Pakistan & England are the current Champs. If you won a Test Championship, were #1 ranked AND had the Title, IMO = UNDISPUTED??
Posted by Meety on (July 17, 2012, 12:14 GMT)@brittop - fair point - but I am stubborn on this one, if you don't play everyone, you can't be the best. @JG2704 - the problem as I see it is, when India became #1, they really didn't do anything all that special to get there. They seemed to play Sri Lanka a thousand times (I'm exaggerating), they seemed to play at home almost exclusively. After losing two consecutive away series to nil, they play at home for something like 2 yrs (no test tours abroad). So yes I agree, the FTP should be home & away within a 4yr cycle, preferably 3 or more tests per series. At the moment Oz seem to slip in these short extra 2-test tours, (played in India & Safrica) & I think there is another to India sometime in the next 2 yrs (outside of the scheduled series). These "extra" tours warp the ratings as they stand. IMO - the ratings should of directly rewarded England for a "7-point turn around" in their away ashes, going form 0-5, to 3-1. The 06/07 Ashes had degraded before then.
Posted by klempie on (July 17, 2012, 11:40 GMT)The only teams which have played fewer tests than SA are Bang and NZ. What does that tell you?
Posted byThe great thing about this series is that if either team wins they will be number 1. If SA can't get the job done then they don't deserve it (unless it rains out all the matches). Providing Swann is fit SA will be playing a good England team with everyone in good form. I like most cricket fans have been waiting for this for a long time.
Posted by brittop on (July 16, 2012, 22:06 GMT)@Meety: I can see that in the best possible world all would play all, but you have to have some time limit. If, say, Ind & Pak don't play each other for 15-20 years would that still be OK? You say it's the same country, but Eng & Aus have been the same country since 1877 when the first test was played!