England, Pakistan fall in Test rankings

England and Pakistan have dropped in the International Cricket Council Test team rankings, while New Zealand and India are the big winners after an annual rankings update by cricket's governing body.

There was no movement at the top of the rankings, with South Africa retaining the world No.1 spot and the ICC Test Championship mace, sitting 22 rating points clear of Australia in second place.

Only three points separate the teams ranked 3-7, with England, ranked No.3 as recently as January, dropping to fifth after failing to secure a series win against the West Indies.

Pakistan’s 1-0 series win over Bangladesh was not enough to stop them sliding down the table.

Ranked third on May 4, Pakistan dropped to sixth after the update, level on 97 rating points with England but below them when measured out to beyond the decimal point.

In January, New Zealand were ranked seventh, but the Black Caps’ improved form was rewarded with a jump to third spot, meaning they will head in to this month’s Test series against England ranked higher than their hosts.

England will drop to seventh if they lose the two Test series against New Zealand, but will jump to third with a series victory.

Winning the series will not be enough for the Black Caps to overtake Australia in second spot, but a loss would see them fall to fifth.

Despite losing the Commonwealth Bank Test series to Australia 2-0 and languishing in seventh before the update, India benefitted from England and Pakistan’s slip-ups to rise to fourth in the rankings, level with New Zealand on 99 points.

Sri Lanka dropped to sixth, one point behind England and Pakistan.

The annual update ensures the ICC Team rankings reflect recent form, with results from 2011-12 now dropped from the rankings calculation and outcomes from the 2013-14 series now weighted at 50 per cent.

These calculations increased South Africa’s previous lead of six points by a further 16 points owing to Hashim Amla’s side gaining six points and Australia dropping 10 points.

India benefited from the annual update as heavy defeats against England and Australia in 2011-12 no longer count, while England’s 4-0 win over India and Pakistan’s 3-0 clean sweep over England were among the results in 2011-12 dropped from the rankings calculations.

ICC Test team rankings (as on May 11)

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Source: icc-cricket.com