Kohli on top of world after ton

Woakes replaces Stokes

BIRMINGHAM, United Kingdom, Aug 5, (AFP): Virat Kohli broke new ground by topping the International Cricket Council Test batting rankings for the first time in his career when the latest edition was published Sunday.

The India captain, already at the head of the equivalent one-day international batting chart, found himself at the summit of these standings after scoring 149 — his maiden Test century in England — and 51 during the series opener at Edgbaston.

Unfortunately for Kohli, his impressive match haul of exactly 200 runs could not prevent an India defeat by 31 runs on Saturday’s fourth day in Birmingham, with England now 1-0 up in a five-match series.

Kohli’s two innings boosted his ranking rating by 31 points and helped him end Steve Smith’s 32-month reign as the top-ranked batsman in Test cricket.

Former Australia captain Smith is currently serving a 12-month international ban for his role in a ball-tampering scandal during a Test against South Africa at Cape Town in March.

Kohli is now on top of the rankings for the first time in an impressive 67Test career that has yielded 5,754 runs

Kohli

10 (-) Aiden Markram (RSA) 703 47.27 759 vs AUS Johannesburg 2018

Bowling

01 (-) James Anderson (ENG) 884 27.19 896 vs WIS Lord’s 2017

02 (-) Kagiso Rabada (RSA) 882 21.71 902 vs AUS Pt Elizabeth 2018

03 (-) Ravindra Jadeja (IND) 857 23.11 899 vs AUS Ranchi 2017

04 (-) Vernon Philander (RSA) 826 21.54 912 vs IND Johannesburg 2013

05 (-) Ravichandran Ashwin (IND) 825 25.17 904 vs ENG Mumbai 2016

06 (-) Pat Cummins (AUS) 800 23.81 800 vs RSA Johannesburg 2018

07 (-) Trent Boult (NZL 795 27.84 825 vs ENG Lord’s 2015

08 (-) Rangana Herath (SRI) 791 27.95 867 vs ZIM Harare 2016

09 (-) Neil Wagner (NZL) 765 28.26 785 vs WIS Wellington 2017

10 (-) Josh Hazlewood (AUS) 759 26.84 863 vs IND Bangalore 2017

England recalled Chris Woakes in place of Ben Stokes and brought in Ollie Pope to replace the dropped batsman Dawid Malan when they named a 13man squad on Sunday for next week’s second Test against India at Lord’s.

Stokes took three wickets on Saturday, including the prize scalp of India captain Virat Kohli, as England won a thrilling first Test at Edgbaston by 31 runs to go 1-0 up in a five-match series.

But England have long known they would likely be without Stokes at Lord’s because of his trial on a criminal charge of affray that starts in Bristol on Monday — just days before the second Test gets underway on Thursday.

They have now replaced Stokes with fellow pace-bowling all-rounder Woakes, who missed out on a Test at his Warwickshire home ground because of concerns he had not then bowled enough overs following a return from a knee injury.

Middlesex batsman Malan was omitted after managing just 74 runs in five Test innings this season.

At Edgbaston, he was out for eight and 20.

He also twice dropped Kohli in the slips before the India skipper had got to three figures in his first-innings 149 — the star batsman’s maiden Test century in England.

England squad for the second Test against India at Lord’s, August 9-13:

Alastair Cook (Essex), Keaton Jennings (Lancashire), Joe Root (Yorkshire, capt), Ollie Pope (Surrey), Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire, wkt), Jos Buttler (Lancashire), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Sam Curran (Surrey), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), James Anderson (Lancashire), Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), Jamie Porter (Essex) South Africa’s David Miller plays a shot during the third One-Day International (ODI) cricket match between Sri Lanka and South Africa at the Pallekele

International Cricket Stadium in Pallekele on Aug 5. (AFP)

PALLEKELE, Sri Lanka, Aug 5, (AFP): Batsman Reeza Hendricks smashed a century on his one-day international debut to set up South Africa’s seriesclinching 78-run victory over Sri Lanka in the third match in Pallekele on Sunday.

Hendricks made 102 off 89 deliveries to help South Africa post 363-7 and then bowl out the hosts for 285 in 45.2 overs. They took an unassailable 3-0 lead in the fivematch series.

Dhananjaya de Silva tried to keep the chase alive with a career-best 84 but Sri Lanka’s batting crumbled under the ever-increasing run-rate.

Fast bowler Lungi Ngidi claimed four wickets while fellow paceman Andile Phehlukwayo took three.

But it was Hendricks, a right-hand batsman who has played 12 Twenty20 internationals, who set up the win for his side that had been swept aside in the two Tests.

The 28-year-old became only the third South African batsman to register a hundred in his first ODI. Colin Ingram and Temba Bavuma are the other two.

Jean-Paul Duminy’s 92 off 70 balls, and half-centuries by Hashim Amla and David Miller, also contributed to South Africa’s imposing total after being put into bat first.

“Brilliant today. Once again, the batting was fantastic. We played aggressive,” said skipper Faf du Plessis, who injured his shoulder while attempting a tough catch in the 10th over and stayed away for the rest of the game.

“And obviously, for a debutant to play that freely was great to see. Every game, there’s one or two guys putting their hands up,” du Plessis said of Hendricks.

Amla gave South Africa a brisk start with his run-a-ball 59 before being bowled by medium-pacer Thisara Perera, who returned impressive figures of 4-44.

Hendricks, who has been around since 2014 when he first played a T20 against Australia, built crucial partnerships including a 78-run fourth-wicket stand with Duminy.

Hendricks celebrated his century in just 88 balls with a boundary off paceman Lahiru Kumara, but was dismissed on the very next delivery.

South African cricket team captain Faf du Plessis tries to catch a shot by Sri Lankan cricketer Thisara Perera during the third One Day International (ODI) cricket match between Sri Lanka and South Africa at the Pallekele

International Cricket Stadium in Pallekele on Aug 5. (AFP)

Duminy, who got his second fifty of the series to lead the batting chart with 177 runs, maintained the momentum with a blazing knock laced with eight fours and four sixes.

Duminy got support from fellow lefthander Miller as the two put on 103 for the fifth wicket to pulverise the bowling.

Miller’s quickfire 51 and Phehlukwayo’s unbeaten 24 off 11 balls gave South Africa 98 off the last seven overs.

Sri Lanka were never in the hunt with South African bowlers getting wickets at regular intervals.

A 95-run, seventh-wicket partnership between de Silva and Akila Dananjaya, who scored 37, raised the hosts’ hopes of making a go of their target.

But Phehlukwayo broke the dangerous-looking stand, dismissing Dananjaya