Smith at No. 2 among Test batters, Cummins second among bowlers
Kane Williamson, despite not playing Tests since March this year, has replaced Joe Root as the top-ranked Test batter
ESPNcricinfo staff
05-Jul-2023
Steven Smith hit 110 and 34 in Australia's win at Lord's • AFP/Getty Images
Steven Smith gained four places to get to No. 2 among Test batters, even as Joe Root slipped as many spots to occupy the fifth position in the rankings. Kane Williamson, who hasn't played Test cricket since March, replaced Root as the No. 1 batter in the format, followed by Smith, Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head.
Smith scored 110 and 34 in a Player-of-the-Match performance in Australia's 43-run win in the second Ashes Test against England at Lord's, which put Australia 2-0 up in the series.
With 882 rating points, he is just one behind Williamson, with the margin between Labuschagne (873) and Head (872) also the same. Usman Khawaja, placed seventh, is the other Australia batter in the top ten.
Among bowlers, Pat Cummins gained two spots to be ranked second, only behind R Ashwin. So far in the Ashes, Cummins has eight wickets at 29.62, with 4 for 63 in the second innings at Edgbaston followed by 3 for 69 during the defence at Lord's.
Cummins replaced James Anderson in second place, while Anderson slipped down to fourth after managing just three wickets across 77 overs in the two Tests against Australia. The other Australian bowler to move up was Mitchell Starc, with his six wickets in the victory at Lord's - three in either innings - helping him move up two places to No. 14.
Root and Ben Stokes also had reason to be pleased despite England falling behind in the Ashes, as both gained among allrounders. While Stokes' attacking 155 at Lord's and three wickets across two Ashes Tests put him up at No. 4, Root's unbeaten 118 at Edgbaston and 2 for 19 at Lord's made him No. 7.