New Zealand pacer Neil Wagner moves to career-best fifth spot in ICC Test rankings after Wellington performance

Dubai: New Zealand’s Neil Wagner, after his stunning performance in the second Test match of the three-match series against Bangladesh, attained his career-best fifth position in ICC Test bowlers rankings.

The Kiwi bowler took nine wickets in the second Test at Wellington, contributing to his team’s win over Bangladesh by an innings and 12 runs.

The 32-year old has not only gained six slots but has also crossed the 800-point mark, becoming only the third bowler from New Zealand to achieve this feat. He currently stands on the fifth position with 801 points.

Wagner is now the top-ranked bowler from his country but Boult has also gained one slot to reach the seventh position after taking seven wickets in the victory in Wellington.

Pat Cummins, the Australian fast bowler is the top-ranked bowler in ICC Test rankings whereas the spinning duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin are the only Indian bowlers to feature in the top 10 rankings. Jadeja is currently on the sixth position whereas Ashwin is on the 10th position.

In terms of batsman rankings, Ross Taylor has moved up 11 places to the 13th position after his score of 200 while Henry Nicholls’ knock of 107 has lifted him two places to the fifth position with a career-best tally of 778 points.

New Zealand’s skipper Kane Williamson remains their highest-ranked batsman, at the second position in the list led by Indian captain Virat Kohli.

For Bangladesh, Mahmudullah has reached his career-best 34th position, moving up six slots. Shadman Islam (up from 102nd to 98th) and Mohammad Mithun (from 140th to 115th) have also moved up in the list for the batsman.

India’s Chesteshwar Pujara also features in the ICC Test top 10 batsman list, as he currently holds the third position.

In terms of team rankings, India is on the pole position whereas New Zealand is in the second position.