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Australian Trio Equalises 39-Year-Old Test Record In ICC Test Rankings

image-livw28m4Travis Head and Steve Smith in WTC Final (Twitter)

Australia have re-created a 39-year-old unique stat on the ICC rankings, following their WTC triumph over India in the final. In the latest charts unveiled by the ICC, as many as three Australian batters occupy the top three positions, with Marnus Labuschagne leading the elite pack.

Travis Head biggest gainer in latest ICC rankings

Travis Head whacked 163 against India in the WTC final in London earlier this month, and formed a 285-run match-winning stand with senior teammate Steve Smith. Meanwhile, Smith himself unleashed 121 runs to punch out his 31st ton in Test cricket.

Head’s ‘Player of the Match’ performance has catapulted him three spots up the rankings, as he leaped past Joe Root, Babar Azam and Kane Williamson with a single stroke. The cricketer is currently placed at number three on ICC’s Test batting charts, and is followed by his fellow teammates Steve Smith, who gained a rung to jump to number two, and Marnus Labuschagne at the top.

With three Australian batters occupying the top three slots on the rankings, they have now equaled a 39-year-old ICC record where top three players on the charts belonged to a same team.

Back in December 1984, three West Indies cricketers reigned supreme at the top. While Gordon Greenidge reserved the top spot for himself, Clive Lloyd followed him up at number two and Larry Gomes was placed at three.

In the meantime, Labuschagne, Smith and Head are all gearing up for the upcoming Ashes series in England. Current holders and recently-crowned WTC winners Australia will seemingly march into the series as favorites.

However, with England’s insurgence in Tests, coupled with difficult English conditions and James Anderson-Stuart Broad threat, one can expect a cracking Ashes series over the next month-and-a-half.