England remained number one Test team – Cricket News Update
England remained at the summit of Test cricket after their convincing eight-wicket win over http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sri-Lanka-c758 in the second Test match, leveling the series 1-1, played at the P Sara Oval Stadium, Colombo.
The Poms' batting order finally fired, with http://www.senore.com/Cricket/AN-Cook-c1026 in the second outing, to help the side chase down a small target of 94 put on by the hosts.
"England will start its domestic international season next month as the number-one ranked Test side in the Reliance ICC Test Championship after retaining the top spot following its eight wickets victory over Sri Lanka in the Colombo Test as the two-Test
series ended in a one-all draw on Saturday," the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/ICC-World-Cup-2011-c100625 said in a statement.
The win helped http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c749 earn two points, leveling them with their closest rival South Africa on the ICC ranking points table. Both teams have 116 ratings points but England is on top after the points were calculated to decimals.
If the Poms had lost the second Test match to Sri Lanka, they would have dropped down to second, and consequently third, provided http://www.senore.com/Cricket/West-Indies-c760 in the on-going Test series by a 3-0 margin.
This is England’s first win in their last five Test matches. Earlier the English contingent was whitewashed by http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755, 3-0, at UAE, after which they were beaten by the Lankans in the first Test at Galle.
This was the second time, in a span of a month, when the no.1 ranked side faced the threat of slipping down to second position. If http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754 with a 3-0 margin on their travels Down Under last month, instead of the eventual 1-0,
England would have been forced to relinquish their Test supremacy.
Nonetheless, the no.1 position still remains up for grabs, considering the Poms will have tough home assignments against the Windies and especially, against the Proteas in May and July respectively.
The points table will be revised again, following the conclusion of the West Indies-Australia Test series.
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