Pakistan slipped two places to languish at eighth in the ICC Test team rankings after a humiliating home series loss to Bangladesh. Former Pakistan captain Babar Azam also fell out of the top 10 in the latest ICC Test Rankings for batters.
Bangladesh completed a 2-0 clean sweep in the two-match Test series in Rawalpindi on Tuesday as they won the second match by 6 wickets.
Pakistan have had a poor run in home Tests since 2021, losing six of their last 10 Test matches at home with the other four Tests drawn. The last win in a home Test dates back to February 2021.
Series losses to Australia and England aside, there was a drawn Test series against New Zealand where neither side won a Test.
On the other hand, the 2-0 series win saw Bangladesh climb up to 4th spot with three wins in six Tests in the current World Test Championship Standings. However, they are still placed 9th in the ICC Test ranking, just below Pakistan.
Australia continues to dominate the Test rankings with 124 rating points, while India and England are following behind with 120, and 108 rating points, respectively.
The recent series win over West Indies saw South Africa climb to the fourth spot. New Zealand, Sri Lanka, and West Indies are at the 5th, 6th and 7th spot, respectively.
Babar’s slips to 12th spot
Meanwhile, it was more bad news for Pakistan on the individual front as well.
Babar, who was placed 9th before the start of the second Bangladesh Test, dropped three places to 12th (712 rating points), after a poor string of scores in the home series.
Babar has not managed a half-century in his last 16 Test innings.
Middle-order batter Saud Shakeel, who scored 141 runs in the first innings of the opening Test, also dropped from 13th to 20th as he failed to score runs in the next three innings.
Meanwhile, wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Rizwan jumped two places to the 10th spot, becoming the only Pakistani player to be in the top 10. Spin all-rounder Salman Ali Agha also made a significant leap, moving up nine spots to 31st.
Spinners Mehidy and Shakib lead Bangladesh to maiden Pakistan Test win
Bangladesh’s hero for the second Test Litton Das rose to 15th in the batting rankings after his crucial 138 in a rescue effort.
His partner, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, also made gains, moving up to 75th in batting and 7th in the all-rounders’ list after a strong showing with both bat and ball.