Kohli jumps to 16th, Vijay 28th in ICC rankings

Dubai, Dec 14 (IANS) Riding on his twin centuries in the first Test against Australia, India's star batsman Virat Kohli has jumped 11 places to be 16th in the latest International Cricket Council (ICC) rankings while in-form Murali Vijay also gained eight places.

Kohli has been rewarded with 85 ratings points for hitting 115 and 141 in the Adelaide Test. The 26-year-old Kohli dropped to 26th following the conclusion of the series against England in August.

He now trails South Africa's Faf du Plessis by four ratings points, while 14th-ranked New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum is 14 ratings points ahead.

The 30-year-old Vijay, who scored 53 and 99, jumped eight places to 28th position. He can potentially move ahead of 24th-ranked Sarfraz Ahmed, whom he trails by 21 points, depending on how he performs in the second Test in Brisbane starting Wednesday.

Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara comfortably sits on top of the batting table.

Australia’s David Warner and Steven Smith have achieved career-best rankings following stellar performances in the first Test against India, which the home side won by 48 runs to go 1-0 up in the four-match Test series.

Warner, who scored 145 and 102, has moved up two places to a career-high fourth place. In the process, the left-handed opener has also recorded his career-best rating of 880. With the batting form he displayed in Adelaide, Warner has a further chance to move up the order as he trails South Africa’s second-ranked AB de Villiers by eight points.

Smith’s 162 not out and 52 not out has put him inside the top 10 for the first time in his career. He has gained five places to a career-high eighth position to become Australia’s second-highest ranked batsmen, leapfrogging Michael Clarke (12th).

Smith is now two ratings points clear of England’s Joe Root and 27 points adrift of Pakistan’s seventh-ranked Younus Khan. Smith’s current 791 points are also his best to date as the Adelaide Test earned him 61 points.

In the rankings for Test bowlers, Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon has returned to the top 20 after the match figures of 12 for 286, including seven for 152 in the second innings, to gain four places that has put him in 19th position. Lyon had slipped out of the top 20 following the series in the UAE, but he now has 17th ranked Junaid Khan of Pakistan firmly within his sights who is just 19 points ahead.

Australia’s Ryan Harris has slipped from second position to fourth, which has moved Rangana Herath and Mitchell Johnson up by one place each. Johnson now leads his new ball partner by three points but trails the Sri Lanka off-spinner by 16 points.

The bowling table is headed by South African Dale Steyn.

Meanwhile, Harris has swapped places with teammate Shane Watson in the rankings for all-rounders and is now in sixth spot. Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan is the top-ranked ranked all-rounder.