NEW DELHI: Leading pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah of India became the first fast bowler from the nation to ever reach the top of the International Cricket Council’s Test bowling rankings on Wednesday. With nine wickets in the match, the 30-year-old was instrumental in India’s triumph over England last week, which tied the series.

At the top of the ICC table, Bumrah took the place of teammate and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin. Ashwin fell to third, while Bumrah moved up three spots at the top. Though he is not playing in the current Test series in New Zealand, South African pacer Kagiso Rabada managed to maintain second place.

Only three Indian bowlers have topped the ICC’s Test bowling rankings before to Bumrah: Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, and the late, great left-arm spinner Bishan Singh Bedi. Before that, Kapil Dev was the highest-ranked Indian fast bowler. He occupied the second spot for a short while, from December 1979 to February 1980. Zaheer Khan, a left-armer, ranked third from October to November 2020.

Following a double century against England, Indian opener Yashasvi Jaiswal shot up to the 29th spot in the most recent rankings, jumping 37 spots. Kane Williamson, the captain of New Zealand, is still a dominant force in the Test batting rankings after leading his side to victory against South Africa on Wednesday with a century in both innings. -AFP