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DUBAI: Pakistan spinner Noman Ali has reached a career-high position in the ICC Men’s Test bowling rankings, moving to joint second place in the latest update released on Wednesday.
Noman now shares the second spot with Australia’s Mitchell Starc, with both bowlers sitting on 843 rating points, while India’s Jasprit Bumrah continues to lead the rankings.
The reshuffle comes after Australia captain Pat Cummins dropped two places, opening the door for Noman’s rise, while Starc moved up following his four-wicket haul in the Boxing Day Test defeat against England.
The surge caps a remarkable year for Noman in red-ball cricket. The left-arm spinner has taken 30 wickets in just four Tests, averaging 17.50 with an economy rate of 3.40.
His performances include three five-wicket hauls and two ten-wicket match returns, underlining his growing influence in Pakistan’s Test setup.
Australia’s Scott Boland also enjoyed a significant climb, moving up two places to seventh with a career-best rating of 810.
England fast bowler Josh Tongue made one of the biggest jumps after his Player-of-the-Match performance against Australia, climbing 13 places to 30th following figures of 5-45 and 2-44 in the match.
Among Pakistani bowlers, Shaheen Shah Afridi slipped one position to 24th, while Mohammad Abbas dropped to 28th and Sajid Khan fell to 29th with 590 points. Spinner Abrar Ahmed moved up one spot to 50th with 401 points.
Khurram Shahzad and Aamer Jamal maintained their 70th and 78th rankings, respectively, while Asif Afridi remains 95th on the list.
In the ICC Men’s Test batting rankings, Saud Shakeel continued his upward progress, climbing to ninth with 734 points. Mohammad Rizwan also improved his standing, rising to 21st.
Babar Azam retained his 23rd position, while all-rounder Salman Ali Agha jumped to 27th with 630 points.
Pakistan Test captain Shan Masood stayed at 44th, Imam-ul-Haq at 51st, Abdullah Shafique at 56th, and Kamran Ghulam slipped to 85th. Aamer Jamal and Saim Ayub are joint 95th.
At the top of the batting rankings, England’s Joe Root remains number one, with Harry Brook moving up three places to second. New Zealand’s Kane Williamson dropped to third.
