Suspended speedster soars to No 1 in world
PROTEAS pace sensation Kagiso Rabada will miss the rest of the Test series against Australia due to suspension, but he can proudly claim to be the No 1 bowler in the world again.
Rabada, who was at the heart of South Africa’s victory in the second Test which levelled the series 1-1, has wrested back the top spot among bowlers in the ICC Test rankings released yesterday.
He has crossed the coveted 900-point mark in ratings, after his man-of-the-match effort of 11/150 helped his team defeat the Australians by six wickets in Port Elizabeth.
Rabada, a star of South Africa’s triumph in the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup in 2014, has vaulted James Anderson to the top position and is now 15 points ahead of the England pace bowler.
The 22-year-old is the 23rd bowler to cross 900 points and only the fourth South African to do so, after Vernon Philander (highest of 912 points in 2013), Shaun Pollock (909 in 1999) and Dale Steyn (909 in 2014).
Proteas batsman AB de Villiers is a major gainer in the latest ICC batting rankings – his scores of 126 not out and 28 in PE helped him move five slots up to seventh on the list, which is led by Australia captain Steve Smith.
World’s top 10 Test bowlers: 1 Kagiso Rabada (SA) – 902; 2 James Anderson (Eng) – 887; 3 Ravindra Jadeja (Ind) – 844; 4 Ravi Ashwin (Ind) – 803; 5 Josh Hazlewood (Aus) – 796; 6 Neil Wagner (NZ) – 784; 7 Rangana Herath (SL) – 777; 8 Vernon Philander (SA) – 776; 9 Mitchell Starc (Aus) – 772; 10 Nathan Lyon (Aus) – 753.