England hang on to second position after 2-1 series win over India – Cricket News Update
England’s emphatic Test series win over http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750 in the recently concluded four-match series not only helped them retain their No. 2 position on the Reliance ICC Test Championship Rankings table, but also ensured they would stay there for another couple of months, regardless of the outcome of the ongoing and future Test series.
The http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c749’s first series triumph on Indian soil since 1984-85 – after drawing the final Test in Nagpur on Monday. The victory earned the Poms one point, which lifted them to 118 rating points, reducing the gap between the top two teams to just five points, an ICC (International Cricket Council) media release said on Monday.
South Africa, who had dethroned England as the world’s best Test side in August this year, continue leading the Test rankings chart with 123 points.
India also remain in fifth place despite the series loss; however, it dropped one rating point and is now on 105 points. This has increased the gap between the Men in Blue and the fourth-ranked archrivals, Pakistan, to four rating points.
A 3-1 series win would have moved http://www.senore.com/Cricket/MS-Dhoni-c2028 and Co to third position on the rankings table, and an Indian victory in Nagpur could have allowed Australia to leapfrog their Ashes rivals England into second position with a 3-0 victory in the ongoing three-match Test series against Sri Lanka. But now, whitewashing the Lankan Lions will put the mighty Aussies just one rating point behind the Poms, at 117.
With only 18 rating points separating the World's top five Test teams, and almost four months remaining to the April 1 cut-off date, the race to the top heats up when the top ranked Proteas host both New Zealand and Pakistan, Australia tour India, and England travel to New Zealand early next year.
The Test team at the top of the Reliance http://www.senore.com/Cricket/ICC-World-Cup-2011-c100625 Test Championship Rankings table on April 1, 2013 will receive a cheque of US $450,000 in prize money.
The Reliance ICC Test player rankings will be updated a day later, Wednesday, December 19.
Reliance ICC Test Championship rankings (after the conclusion of India-England Test series)
Rank Team Points
1. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757 123
2. England 118
3. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 114
4. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 109
5. India 105
6. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 96
7. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/West-Indies-c760 91
8. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754 79
9. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Bangladesh-c747 0
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