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India captain Anil Kumble rose two places to fifth among bowlers while teammate VVS Laxman returned to top 20 among batsmen for the first time in three years in the latest released International Cricket Council (ICC) Test Player Rankings.

Kumble, in his debut Test as captain, bowled his team to six-wicket victory in the first Test against arch-rivals Pakistan. Laxman, who scored unbeaten 72 in his team’s first innings total of 276, climbs two places to 20th position. He returns to top 20 for the first time since October 2004 when he was there in the home series against Australia.

He now has South Africa captain Graeme Smith in 19th spot in his sights. Smith’s next Test appearance will be against West Indies in the Boxing Day Test in Port Elizabeth, which means if Laxman carries his good form in the next two Tests against Pakistan, he has the chance to overtake Smith.

Rahul Dravid is highest-ranked Indian batsman in 11th position while Sachin Tendulkar is 18th and Sourav Ganguly in 28th spot after dropping one position. For Pakistan, the only consolation from the first Test defeat was Misbah-ul-Haq’s jump from 88th to 66th spot among batsmen. He scored 82 and 45 in two innings.

Mohammad Yousuf maintains fourth position but innings of 27 and 18 means he loses 17 points. This widens gap between him and third-placed Kumar Sangakkara to 28 points. It also means Australia’s Mike Hussey and England’s Kevin Pietersen are just 17 and 19 points adrift respectively.

Younis Khan, only other Pakistan batsman in top 30, drops one place to eighth while Kamran Akmal falls four places to 34th and captain Shoaib Malik slips six places to 51st. Shoaib Akhtar, with match figures of 6-102 in his first Test in 11 months, strengthens position in the top 10 of ICC Player Rankings for Test bowlers by rising two places to eighth.

He will now be targeting seventh-placed Shane Bond and eighth-placed Brett Lee, who are within his striking distance.

Mohammad Asif (not available in the series due to an elbow injury) and Danish Kaneria retain their places in 17th and 14th positions. But Umar Gul, who also missed the first Test due to a sore back, drops out of top 20 to 22nd position while Mohammad Sami slips two places to 42nd spot.

Source:Cricket News

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