Ben Stokes stoops to lowest Test rankings in nine years

Full-time Test skipper of England, Ben Stokes, slipped to 41st in the ICC Men's Test ranking for batters after a couple of underwhelming Tests against Pakistan. Stokes, who was recovering from a hamstring injury, saw his ranking on the list of batters drop from 30th to 34th post the first Test in Multan. The second Test saw him out of the forties for the first time since December 2015. In between, Stokes had been at the 40th position twice, in October 2016 and February 2019.

The bowling rankings also took a toll. Stokes saw his name outside the top-50 for the first time since August 2, 2015. During this period, there were three occasions when Stokes was on 49th. The second Test which Pakistan won to level the series saw Stokes return wicketless in the 10 overs he bowled across the two innings.

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The rankings under the all-rounder classification was sure to take a hit due to it being linked to the batting and bowling rankings. December 30, 2015, was the last time Stokes was outside the top-10. History recurred as his position dropped three places down from ninth. Stokes, who held the top spot in the category of all-rounders in the longest format of the game for some time, was a constant feature in the top-five for in recent years.  

Rabada overtakes Bumrah to lead the chart

Meanwhile, Jasprit Bumrah was overtaken by ace South African quick, Kagiso Rabada, to secure the top position in the list for bowlers. This comes after a majestic nine-wicket haul in the first Test of the ongoing series between Bangladesh and the Proteas.

Also Read: Ben Stokes 'hurting' with how Pakistan series unfolded: Brendon McCullum

Interestingly, Stokes' best bowling ranking has been 19th, which he attained on July 31, 2017. Having returned to bowling of late, he would be aiming to get his name up the leaderboard during England's tour to New Zealand this year.