England help India become No. 1 ranked Test team after thrashing South Africa in 3rd Test at Wanderers
England help India become No. 1 ranked Test team after thrashing South Africa in 3rd Test at Wanderers
India became the unwitting benefactors of South Africa’s shocking loss to England, earning the No. 1 Test ranking. South Africa, who were thrashed 3-0 by India mere months ago, have now lost to England at home, with the visitors taking an unassailable 2-0 lead in the Test series. South Africa were bowled out for mere 83 in their second innings of the third Test at Wanderers after Stuart Broad ran through them with a spell of 6 for 17. India, currently playing a One-Day International (ODI) series in and against Australia, have gained from South Africa’s bad form. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: South Africa vs England 2015-16, 3rd Test at Johannesburg, Day 3
It has been a tremendous journey for India, from at the pinnacle of Test cricket in 2011 to suffering eight successive overseas losses. Their first win overseas since beating West Indies in 2011 came at Lord’s in 2014, but that win was smothered by series losses in South Africa, New Zealand, England, and Australia. READ: Stuart Broad goes past Bob Willis to become England’s third-highest Test wicket-taker
India have shown a marked improvement in Test cricket under the captaincy of Virat Kohli. Kohli led India to a 2-1 series win in Sri Lanka — India’s first Test series win in the country since 1993 — and then was at the helm for India’s 3-0 routing of the visiting South Africa in a series that could easily have been a 4-0 whitewash but for a washed out Test. READ: India’s Test series win over South Africa masks discrepancies
| Rank | Team | Matches | Points | Rating |
| 1 | India | 32 | 3535 | 110 |
| 2 | Australia | 43 | 4674 | 109 |
| 3 | South Africa | 34 | 3651 | 107 |
| 4 | Pakistan | 28 | 2977 | 106 |
| 5 | England | 45 | 4660 | 104 |
| 6 | New Zealand | 39 | 3906 | 100 |
| 7 | Sri Lanka | 35 | 3123 | 89 |
| 8 | West Indies | 33 | 2504 | 76 |
| 9 | Bangladesh | 22 | 1026 | 47 |
| 10 | Zimbabwe | 10 | 53 | 5 |
Meanwhile, South Africa have looked a far sight from the world-beating unit they have usually been. The routing in India seriously hampered their confidence, which has now further taken a beating at the hands of the visiting England. South Africa are in trouble of a freefall, and will have to find the motivation to overcome their surprisingly bad form.