Dubai: Indian skipper Virat Kohli’s recent form in Tests reflected in the ICC Test rankings as he reached to the second spot in the list of batsmen according to the latest update.
The talismanic right-hander recently notched up his highest Test score in the drawn Delhi test match against Sri Lanka and also became the first Indian captain to score six double hundreds.
He amassed a total of 610 runs in the three-match series where he reached the three-figure mark three consecutive times and also slammed back-to-back double centuries. The 29-year old, who began the series in the sixth position, ended with a jaw-dropping average of 152.50 as he surpassed the likes of David Warner, Cheteshwar Pujara, Kane And Joe Root to grab the second spot after Australian skipper Steve Smith.
Kohli, who is the number one ranked batsman in both ODIs and T20Is, now has 893 ratings, 45 short of Smith’s 938. With the South Africa tour set to begin early next year, the 29-year-old would aim to reach to the top of the Test rankings as well.
Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting is the only one to have topped all three formats at the same time when he did it in December 2005-2006. Former Australian opener Matthew Hayden is the other batsman who has been at the top of the rankings in all the three formats.
England captain Joe Root now is at the third position with 879 points while Pujara is fourth with 873 points.
Kohli has currently been rested for the ODI and T20I series against Sri Lanka beginning from December 10. Rohit Sharma will lead the team in his absence.