Australia to jump to third in ICC world Test cricket rankings after Ashes

AUSTRALIA slipped to fifth on the International Cricket Council’s Test rankings last year but are set to jump back up the ladder when the charts are updated after the Ashes.

Steve Smith of Australia raises his bat to celebrate his century on day five of the Boxing Day test match between Australia and England at the MCG in Melbourne, Saturday, December 30, 2017. (AAP Image/George Salpigtidis) NO ARCHIVING, EDITORIAL USE ONLY, IMAGES TO BE USED FOR NEWS REPORTING PURPOSES ONLY, NO COMMERCIAL USE WHATSOEVER, NO USE IN BOOKS WITHOUT PRIOR WRITTEN CONSENT FROM AAP

AUSTRALIA boast the leading Test run-scorer and wicket-taker of 2017 but the team’s quest for the No. 1 ranking will continue beyond the upcoming tour of South Africa.

Steve Smith last year added six more tons to the case he is building to be the nation’s best batsman since Don Bradman, scoring a world-best 1305 runs at 76.76.

Nathan Lyon’s career-best form was also well rewarded in 2017, when he collected a world-best 63 scalps at 23.55.

Australia slipped to fifth on the International Cricket Council’s Test rankings last year but are set to clamber over England and into third spot when the charts are updated after the Ashes.

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Steve Smith was the leading run scorer in Test cricket in 2017.

Nathan Lyon too 63 wickets at 23.55 in 2017.

Cricket Australia has made no secret of prioritising Test performances over other formats, wanting Smith’s XI to become — at least according to the ICC’s table — the best Test side in the world.

It is why some players and coaching staff will head to South Africa early and skip the upcoming Twenty20 tri-series, co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand.

Australia face the second-placed Proteas in a four-Test series that starts on March 1 in Durban.

Even if Australia crush the hosts 4-0 in that contest they won’t be able to overtake world No. 1 India in the ICC’s rankings.

Every nation in the world struggles to win Tests overseas, with this year’s tours of South Africa and the United Arab Emirates to give Smith a better idea of how talented his team is.

Australia are due to face Pakistan in a short Test series later this year. They then host India in 2018-19 and travel to England for the 2019 Ashes.

“I’d like to hope this team can keep growing, keep getting better and keep working our way up the rankings,” Smith said last month. “We’ve still got a long way to go.”

Smith and Lyon were part of Australian outfits that briefly occupied No. 1 spot on the ICC’s table, in 2014 and 2016.

Smith has a vice-like hold on top spot on the ICC’s batting charts, with India skipper Virat Kohli some 54 points below him in second place. Smith has 947 points in the ICC’s latest update, leaving him 14 points below Don Bradman on the all-time rankings list.

The classy right-hander ticked past 1000 runs for a fourth consecutive calendar year, becoming only the second batsman in history along with Australia’s Matthew Hayden to achieve the feat when he plundered England’s attack in Perth.

Best ever ratings for batsmen in the ICC Test Rankings

961 - Don Bradman in 1948
947 - Steve Smith in 2017
945 - Len Hutton in 1954
942 - Jack Hobbs in 1912
942 - Ricky Ponting in 2006

— Mazher Arshad (@MazherArshad) December 31, 2017

TEST RANKINGS (TOP FIVE, YET TO BE UPDATED WITH ANY ASHES RESULTS)

1) India 124

2) South Africa 111

3) England 105

4) New Zealand 100

5) Australia 97

LEADING TEST RUN-SCORERS IN 2017

1) Steve Smith (AUS) — 1305 at 76.76

2) Cheteshwar Pujara (IND) — 1140 at 67.05

3) Dean Elgar (RSA) — 1128 at 53.71

4) Virat Kohli (IND) — 1059 at 75.64

LEADING TEST WICKET-TAKERS IN 2017

1) Nathan Lyon (AUS) — 63 at 23.55

2) Kagiso Rabada (RSA) — 57 at 20.28

3) Ravichandran Ashwin (IND) — 56 at 27.58

4) Jimmy Anderson (ENG) — 55 at 17.58