Australia is once again dominating the test cricket world as they returned to the top on the ICC Test rankings. Australia's spectacular 4-0 win in the Ashes took the team to the top. Also, this is the first time Australia reached the No.1 ranking since May 2020.
Pat Cummins and his men thrashed England in Brisbane, Adelaide, Melbourne, and Hobart. On the other hand, the fourth test in Sydney resulted in a draw. Australia jumped over India and New Zealand and clinched the top position with 119 rating points. The former top ranked team India slipped to the 3rd rank post 2-1 series defeat to South Africa. New Zealand is at the second position with 117 rating points.
Marnus Labuschagne tops the ICC Test Rankings with 935 rating points. The Australian batter aggregated 526 runs in 5 test matches in the year 2021 with an average of 65.75 and and a strike rate of 49.07. His 526 runs also include 2 centuries against India and England. On the other hand, Marnus hit 106 runs in 2 test matches this year with an average of 26.50 and and a strike rate of 64.24.
The Australian captain Pat Cummins started his captaincy career phenomenally by emerging victory in the Ashes. In 2021, Cummins scalped 21 overs in 156.5 overs. He took his best bowling figure of the year 5/38 against England in the Brisbane Cricket Ground. He bowled 68.3 overs in 2022 and took 11 wickets with a BBI of 4/45. He is holding the top position of the ICC test rankings since the 2019 Ashes.
Australia is clearly back in the form and ruling the test cricket once again. Do you thnk that Australia will be successful in continuing this reign?
Cricket Australia on Friday announced a 15-member squad for the upcoming Women's ODI World Cup 2025. The Australian team will enter the World Cup under the leadership of experienced wicketkeeper-batsman Alyssa Healy. Left-arm spinner Sophie Molineux and allrounder Georgia Wareham have returned to the squad after recovering from injury.
The seven-time champion Australia is also the defending champion and will look to maintain its dominance in the upcoming competition. This tournament will be jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka from September 30 to November 2.
Sophie Molineux has been out since January due to a knee injury. However, she will not be able to play in the three-match ODI series against India from 14 to 20 September. Darcie Brown and Georgia Wareham also returned to the squad from recent injuries.
Ten of the 15 members named featured in the previous edition of the tournament back in 2022, with skipper Alyssa Healy taking charge of the squad in her third Cricket World Cup.
Australia to begin campaign on October 1
The Australia also includes 10 players who were also part of the last tournament played in 2022. This team also includes experienced players like Ellyse Perry, Beth Mooney, Annabel Sutherland, Tahlia McGrath and Ash Gardner. Australia will begin its campaign against New Zealand in Indore on October 1.
Australia will finalise its preparations for the mega event with three ODIs against hosts India from September 14-20 in New Chandigarh and New Dehli, before opening its Women's ODI World Cup 2025 campaign.
Australia will face each of the other seven nations across the round-robin format, with the top four sides progressing to the semi-finals on October 29 and 30. The Final will be played November 2.
Most Test centuries in the World Test Championship
Joe Root, with 21 test tons, has scored the most test centuries in the World Test Championship so far. Shubman Gill has entered the top 10 of the list recently.
The World Test Championship was started in 2019 to make Test cricket interesting. The Championship has changed the way Test Cricket is being played. Teams like England and India, along with Australia, have shown their aggressive brand of cricket.
South Africa are the current winner of the ICC World Test Championship. New Zealand and Australia have won the World Test Championships in the first two editions, while India played the final on both occasions.
Here are the players with the most Test centuries in the World Test Championship.
1. Joe Root | 21
Root dedicated his 21st century on WTC to former England keeper Graham Thorpe. Image | ICC
England's Joe Root has the most Test centuries in the World Test Championship. So far, he has scored 21 centuries in 126 innings of 69 matches. Root is also the batsman who has scored the most runs in this tournament, with6080 runs at an average of 52.86.
Till now, Root is the only batter to score more than 6000 runs in WTC history.
His best knock came against India in 2021 when he scored 228 in Chennai to help his side win the game.
Australia's Steve Smithhas now scored the most test centuries in the World Test Championship. The Aussie top-order batter has been one of the best test batters of this generation and has scored runs all around the world.
Smith is known for his unorthodox and yet effective batting style, which keeps on annoying the opponent's bowling lineups.
Till now in WTC, Steve Smith has scored 4225 runs at an outstanding average of 50.29, including 13 test centuries.
Australia's Marnus Labuschagne has scored 11 centuries in his Test career, and all have been scored in the World Test Championship. In 53 matches, he has scored 4225 runs at an average of 48.01 during the Test Championship.
Marnus used to have his test average over 50. However, a recent dip in form, which also led to him being dropped from the test side as well, brought his batting average down.
Still, he is the batter with the second-most test centuries and third-most runs in WTC history so far.
4. Kane Williamson | 11
Kane Williamson has batted amazingly in the World Test Championship. He has played only 28 matches so far in this tournament, but has managed to score 11 centuries in his 50 innings.
Williamson has the best average (61.34) among the batsmen who have scored at least 2000 runs in the World Test Championship. During the Test match versus South Africa, the former Kiwi skipper scored two tons in the same game.
Former Indian test captain Rohit Sharma is the only Indian batter included in the 'most Test centuries in the World Test Championship' list.
Before retiring from the format, Rohit played 40 matches during the Test Championship since 2019. In his 69 innings, he has scored 9 centuries and 8 half-centuries with his bat.
With 2716 runs in the World Test Championship in just 40 Tests, Rohit is the highest scorer for India in WTC history so far, with an average is 41.15. Rohit Sharma's all of 9 test tons in WTC came in winning cause for India.
Brook after scoring his latest test century, vs India in Birmingham. Image | Getty Images
Currently, the ICC No.1 Men's test batter, Harry Brook, comes at number six on our list of players with the most test centuries in the World Test Championship.
The English youngster has just played 26 test matches during the WTC cycles and has scored 9 centuries so far.
Apart from Joe Root, he has been the shining armour of the English batting lineup in the last two seasons. Brook, till now, has scored 2424 test runs in WTC at an average of 55.09, with an outstanding strike rate of 84.54, the highest in WTC history.
Gill after scoring his double ton against England at Edgbaston. Image | BCCI
Before starting his tenure as the captain of the Indian men's test cricket team, Shubman Gill was nowhere on this list of batters with the most test hundreds in WTC history.
But as he wore the blazer of the Indian team, he was a different beast. In the first two tests as captain, he hit three centuries, which also had a highest score of 269, the highest by any Indian test captain.
Till now, in 37 tests in WTC, Gill has scored 2647 runs at an average of 41.35, including 9 test tons.
8. Babar Azam | 8
The former Pakistan skipper has scored 8 centuries during the World Test Championship cycle. Babar Azam is the sixth in the list of batters with the most test centuries in WTC history.
In 36 matches, he has also scored 2998 runs at an average of 48.35 during the Test Championship.
The 29-year-old isn’t in the greatest of form currently, but on his day, Babar Azam is a delight to watch.
One of his most memorable knocks came against Australia in Karachi in 2022. Babar scored 196 while chasing a huge total in the 4th inning of the game.
9. Dhananjaya de Silva | 8
Sri Lanka's Dhananjaya De Silva might be one of the surprising names on this list.
The Sri Lanka captain has been one of the best batters for his country despite lacking support from the other end, most of the time.
So far, he has scored 8 centuries in 62 innings of 35 matches. Dhananjaya also scored 2509 runs, with an average of 44.80, during the Test Championship. Dhananjaya is also one of the active players with the most test centuries currently.
Head after scoring a ton against India in 2024. Image | Getty Images
Travis Head, the swashbuckling left-handed batter, has also scored 8 test tons during the World Test Championship cycle. The Aussie batter is one of the most dangerous middle-order batters in the world at the moment in test cricket.
Till now, in 51 matches in WTC, Head has scored 3264 runs at an average of 40.80, with a strike-rate of 72.85. Head also scored 15 fifties during the World Test Championship.
Head's 7 out of 8 test tons during the WTC came in a winning cause for Australia.
Australian opener Usman Khawaja has hit 8 centuries during the World Test Championship cycle.
In 42 matches, he has scored3251 runs at an average of 45.78. The Southpaw batter is a treat to watch when he is in song and has restored his career with some outstanding scores for the current WTC champions.
He was also the second-highest-scoring batsman in the 2021–2023 WTC cycle with 1,621 runs, the highest by an Australian batsman.
Joe Root scored his 38th Test Century on the third day of the fourth Test between England and India in Manchester. He is now the batsman with the most test centuries for England.
The Nation England has produced some extraordinary Batsmen in Cricket. They have impressed Cricket fans from all over the world with their achievements and glory. The test is considered the Best Format in Cricket. England has & had some players who are the best among many in the world of Test Cricket. Sir Jack Hobbs is considered the Best Test Batsman for England in Tests. He has scored 5410 runs in just 102 innings with 15 centuries and 28 half-centuries.
In recent times of greats, Joe Root has proven himself one of the greatest if not the greatest for England in Test Format as he has every right due to his achievements. Now, Let's give a look at the list of the Top 5 Batsmen with the most test centuries for England.
Top 5 Batsmen with the Most Test Centuries for England:
1. Joe Root | 38 Centuries
England batter Joe Root has written his name in the history books for England in Test Format by bringing up his 38th Test hundred on the third day of the fourth Test between England and India in Manchester. With this century, Root also climbed to second on the all time list of Test run-scorers. Moreover, he also overtook Graham Gooch as the highest run-scorer at Lord's in international cricket.
Root made his debut in 2012 against team India and since then he has played 157* test matches. He has scored 13,409 runs with an average of 51.17.
2. Alastair Cook | 33 Centuries
Image - ICC
Alastair Cook was one of the greats in Test Cricket of his generation. He made his debut against India in 2006 for the national team in Test Cricket. Cook played 161 Test matches in which he batted 291 innings. He scored 12,472 runs with an average of 45.35. His highest score was 294 and he made 33 centuries and 57 half-centuries for his team. Cook played his last Test Match against India in 2018.
Kevin Pietersen has proved himself across every format for England. He made his Test debut in 2005 against the Australian side at Lords. Pietersen played 104 test matches, in which he scored 8181 runs with an average of 47.29. He played his last test match against Australia in 2014. Kevin Pietersen is third on the list with 23 Centuries.
The judgment of cricket history is that the greatest batsmen the game has known are - WG Grace, Jack Hobbs, Walter Hammond, and Don Bradman. Others may come close indeed to those four but do not quite take place with them. Hammond made his test debut against South Africa in 1927. He played 85 test matches and scored 7249 runs with an average of 58.45. He is 4th on the list with 22 test centuries. The Great Walter Hammond played his last Test match against New Zealand in 1947.
Colin Cowdrey mostly known as Michael Cowdrey played Cricket for 21 years, One of the most durable batsmen in the history of Test Cricket. Cowdrey made his test debut in 1954 against the Aussies and played 114 matches, scoring 7624 runs with an average of 44.06. He is 5th on the list with the same no as Wally Hammond, 22 centuries. Michael Cowdrey played his last test match in 1975 against the Australian side.
Top 10 Players with the Most Centuries in Test Cricket for England:
Pat Cummins surpassed Richie Benaud to become the second captain to pick most Test wickets. This also makes him the leading wicket-taker among Australian captains.
In the realm of cricket, leadership is not only about guiding the team but also about leading by example. Captaining a team in Test matches adds an extra layer of responsibility, requiring the ability to inspire and strategize while maintaining individual performance. Captains who can inspire their team through their own performances hold a special place in the annals of cricket history. One of the most significant measures of a captain's impact is their ability to take wickets in Test matches, the pinnacle of the sport.
Let's explore the elite group of bowlers who have not only captained their sides but also have most Test wickets as captain.
Imran Khan, a charismatic leader and an exceptional all-rounder has the most Test wickets as captain. He captained Pakistan from the early 1980s to the early 1990s. Imran was a renowned sportsman who not only led Pakistan to a World Cup victory but also set an example of ideals for all youngsters to aspire to. He was one of the finest captains of his time.
Imran Khan has got187 wicketsin48 Test matchesin his 21 years of Test career (1971-1992) as captain. He has a total of362 Test wicketson his name for Pakistan. Imran Khan has the second-best Test figure in this list of best Test captains.
2. Pat Cummins | 145 Wickets
Pat Cummins joined the elite list of most Test wickets as captain. He has also surpassed Richie Benaud to become the second captain to pick most Test wickets. This also makes him the leading wicket-taker among Australian captains.
Cummins has now taken 145 wickets so far in 37 Test matches as captain at an impressive average of 22.66 with nine five-wicket hauls. The World Cup-winning captain also became the first-ever cricketer to take 100 Test wickets as a captain in the ICC World Test Championship history. Cummins has taken 309 Test wickets at an average of 22.10 so far and is Australia's highest-ranked bowler in the ICC Test bowling standings.
3. Richie Benaud | 138 Wickets
Richie Benaud, who is best remembered as one of Australia's most-imaginative captains, occupies the 2nd spot in terms of taking the most Test wickets as captain, with138 Test wickets in 28 games. He served as captain of the Australian national team from 1958 to 1963, during which time Australia never lost a Test (international) series.
Benaud first appeared in Test matches in 1951. He developed a reputation as a fine leg-spin bowler as well as an excellent batsman and fielder. He also became known for his intelligent and energetic play.
4. Garfield Sobers | 117 Wickets
Garfield Sobers aka Sir Garry Sobers is considered to be one of the greatest batsmen after Sir Don Bradman and the greatest All Rounder of all time. Garry took 117 wicketsof his 39 Test matches as captain. They are the 3rd most behind Imran Khan's 187 and Richie Benaud's 138.
Garry Sobers holds the record for bowling most number of balls as a captain in Tests. He bowled 10860 balls as a captain. Only other captain to bowl 10000 or more balls is Richie Benaud who bowled 10720 balls.
Former New Zealand left-arm spinner, Daniel Vettori has the fourth most Test wickets as captain. Vettori made his first appearance in Test cricket in 1997 against England. As captain, Vettori took116 Test wicketsat an average of33.38, and hit four centuries and nine fifties to aggregate 1917 runs.
Under the left-arm spinner, New Zealand have won just six Tests, with four of them coming against Bangladesh, and one each against England and Pakistan, apart from 18 defeats and 13 draws. In the 13 series that Vettori led, New Zealand lost on nine occasions.
6. Kapil Dev | 111 Wickets
Kapil Dev occupies the 5th spot in terms of taking the most Test wickets as captain. He was the first Indian Captain who won the ICC Cricket World Cup in 1983. Kapil is one of the legendary cricketers India have ever produced. Before Kapil Dev's era, cricket was a low-profile game in India with a limited audience. He brought a revolution in Indian cricket through his captaincy.
Kapil Dev led the Indian Test team in 34 matches where he picked 111 Test wickets. He also has overall 434 Test wickets to his name in just 131 Test Matches for India. Every Indian cricket fan was impressed with the one-man show skill that Kapil presented through his bowling, batting, and captaincy. His services as one of the best all-rounders in cricket would be remembered forever.
7. Wasim Akram | 107 Wickets
We all know how good of a player Wasim Akram was during his cricketing days. One of the greatest bowlers of his generation and some say he was the greatest left-arm fast bowler in the history of cricket. The Sultan of swing, the king of reverse swing, and the hero of the 1992 world cup final, Wasim Akram was a trademark fast bowler throughout his career.
Wasim Akram took over the Test captaincy from Javed Miandad in 1993. He captained Pakistan in 25 Tests and took 107 wickets at an average of 23.36. Wasim was also known as a very aggressive and confrontational captain on the field.
8. Bishan Singh Bedi | 106 Wickets
Known for his outspokenness, late cricketer Bishan Singh Bedi occupies the 7th spot in terms of taking the most Test wickets as captain. Bedi was widely known as one of the greatest spinners produced by India who played international cricket.
Bedi, famous for his outstanding accuracy and spin bowling, picked up 266 wickets in Test cricket at an average of 28.71 with 14 five-wicket hauls. The left-arm spinner also claimed seven wickets in the 50-over format. Out of the 266 Test wickets, Bedi bagged106 of those as captain, having led the Indian team in 22 Tests.
South Africa has produced some magnificent talents in world cricket's history. Among those superb talents, there was another such diamond that waited for its turn to shine, Shaun Pollock. Pollock is the first South African to take 400 wickets. Even the greatest of all time Sachin Tendulkar went cautious while facing him.
Pollock was the captain when South Africa suffered an ignominious exit from the 2003 World Cup, which was held in their country. Pollock played 82 Tests as a player, taking 318 wickets at an average of 23.68, with 12 five-wicket hauls and a best of 7/87. While Pollock played26 Tests as captain, taking 103 wickets at an average of 21.36, with 4 five-wicket hauls and a best of 6/30.
5 wickets in 15 balls! Mitchell Starc creates record for the fastest five-wicket haul in test cricket
Aussie left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc took five wickets in just 15 balls to create the record for the fastest five-wicket haul in test cricket history. Starc created this record on his 100th test match during the WI vs AUS third test.
On his 100th test, Australian pacer Mitchell Starc created a record which would be very hard to break in future. During the second innings of the pink-ball test between West Indies and Australia in Kingston, Starc registered his 16th five-wicket haul in test cricket in just 15 balls.
In doing that, he broke the record for the fastest five-wicket haul (from the start of bowling innings) in test cricket history, breaking Ernie Toshack, Stuart Broad and Scott Boland's previous record of 19 balls.
Starc's record-breaking five-wicket haul in 15 balls
Here is how Mitchell Starc broke the record for the fastest five-wicket haul in test cricket history.
1st wicket: 1st ball - John Campbell
Starc after removing John Campbell on the first ball. Image | Associated Press
Starc dismissed John Campbell with a beautiful outswinger in the first ball of the second inning. The ball moved a bit, and it was enough to produce an edge to substitute wicket-keeper Josh Inglish.
2nd wicket: 5th ball - Kevlon Anderson
In the fifth ball of the first over, Kevlon Anderson left a delivery from Starc, who was able to make the ball come in sharply. The ball hit the pad, and the umpire was not hesitant to rule him out, as Kevlon Anderson did not offer any shot. Although he took the DRS, only to be proven wrong by the review.
3rd wicket: 6th ball - Brandon King
It was a typical Mitchell Starc dismissal. Brandon King was bamboozled by a big inswinging delivery from Starc.
King went for a big drive through the long off region, but the ball came back sharply to go through his bat and pad and took an inside edge before hitting the stumps.
Starc had three wickets in his and Australia's first over.
Starc celebrates after taking his 400th test wicket. Image | Associated Press vis ESPN Cricinfo
Although West Indies batters were able to play out Starc's second over, the left-arm pacer struck in the first ball of his third over.
Another big inswinging delivery at 142.4 kmph, and Mikyle Louis did not have any answer to that. Louis lounged into a big defence, but the ball came back in sharply and went on to hit the front of his back pad, in front of the middle.
The right-handed batter did not even wait for the umpire's decision and started walking back.
That was Starc's 400th test wicket. He is only the second left-arm pacer ever to take 400 test wickets. Only Wasim Akram is ahead of him at the moment with 419 test wickets.
5th wicket: 15th ball - Shai Hope
Starc left the field on a standing ovation by the Aussie teammates during the tea break. Image | X
Two balls later, Starc got Shai Hope out with the same formula.
Hope did not know which way the ball was going and had his weight on the back foot. He was late before the inswinger hit his front pad.
Hope went for the DRS, only to know that the ball was crushing the middle of leg stump.
After the 15th ball, Starc's bowling figure showed 2.3-2-2-5.
Fastest five-wicket hauls (from the start of bowling innings) in test cricket
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