Staff Reporter.
Kagiso Rabada has leapfrogged Jasprit Bumrah, R Ashwin and Josh Hazlewood to go top of the ICC men’s Test bowling rankings after his nine-wicket haul in South Africa’s first Test against Bangladesh.
Rabada took three wickets in Bangladesh’s first innings, becoming the fastest to 300 Test wickets in the process, and then returned figures of 6 for 46 as South Africa won their first Test in Asia since 2014.
He had first topped the rankings after the Newlands Test against India in January 2018 and held the top spot for much of the next 12 months.
Bumrah and Ashwin both had indifferent showings in India’s defeat to New Zealand in Pune, and the two also dropped below Hazlewood to sit third and fourth respectively in the latest rankings.
Pakistan left-arm spinner Noman Ali also saw a big jump, moving up nine places to go eighth after his nine wickets in Rawalpindi. This is the first time he has entered the top ten of the Test bowlers’ rankings.