Sehwag reaches No.1 in Test rankings

Virender Sehwag, the Indian opener, has taken the No. 1 spot in the ICC Test rankings after hitting successive centuries against South Africa. With a rapid 165 in the Kolkata Test, which India won to stay top of the ICC rankings for teams, and 109 in Nagpur before that, Sehwag has displaced good friend and fellow Test opener Gautam Gambhir.

Sehwag sits top of the pile with 863 points, while Gambhir has dropped to fifth position with 824. He had tremendous success in 2009 - an average of 108.98 in six Tests - and in the four Tests he has played this year, Sehwag already has two centuries. He was also the recipient of the prize for best Test innings, for the second year running, for the ESPNcricinfo Awards where his audacious 293 against Sri Lanka in Mumbai was chosen over four other nominations shortlisted for the award.

South Africa's Hashim Amla, whose three centuries in three innings against India earned him two Man-of-the-Match awards and the Man-of-the-Series accolade, has leapfrogged to second place in the rankings with 842 points.

Sachin Tendulkar, who also scored two centuries in the two-Test series with South Africa, occupies sixth place with 805 points.

In the ICC's ranking for one-day internationals, India's captain MS Dhoni has moved back to No. 1, displacing Michael Hussey with whom he has shared a tussle for the top spot. Hussey scored 23 in his last innings and thus fell below Dhoni who has a chance to stay on top for longer with three ODIs lined up against South Africa. Ricky Ponting has jumped four places to occupy fourth place.

The other big mover is Doug Bollinger, who has gained 25 places and has broken into the top 20 for the first time in his career. Bollinger took 11 wickets in the five-ODI series against West Indies to help Australia to a 4-0 victory. He now sits in 18th position in the latest rankings, not far behind Sri Lanka's Ajantha Mendis.