Dubai, July 9, 2025: South Africa’s stand-in captain Wiaan Mulder has made a dramatic rise in the latest ICC Test Batters Rankings, climbing 34 spots to reach 22nd position following his unbeaten 367-run marathon against Zimbabwe in the second Test. With this performance, Mulder now holds 669 rating points, surpassing former Pakistan captain Babar Azam, who has slipped to 23rd with 651 points.
Among Pakistani batters, the rankings update brought little cheer. Test vice-captain Saud Shakeel fell two positions to 13th, while wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan also slipped to 21st, holding 671 points. T20I skipper Salman Ali Agha dropped one spot to 34th, and Test captain Shan Masood fell four places to 48th. Opening batter Abdullah Shafique moved down to 52nd, while Kamran Ghulam held steady at 76th. Saim Ayub also saw a slight dip, falling one place to 84th.
At the top of the batting rankings, England’s Harry Brook has taken over the number one spot, overtaking Joe Root, who now stands second. Former New Zealand captain Kane Williamson remains in third place.
In the Test bowling rankings, Pakistan’s Noman Ali retained his fifth position with 806 rating points, maintaining his status as the country’s top-ranked bowler. Sajid Khan and Shaheen Afridi both inched up one place each, now ranked 19th and 20th respectively. Meanwhile, Mohammad Abbas dropped to 27th, while Naseem Shah held firm at 35th. Abrar Ahmed slipped two spots to 50th, Khurram Shahzad dropped to 64th, while Aamer Jamal, Mir Hamza, and Zahid Mahmood maintained their positions at 71st, 93rd, and 97th respectively.
Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah continues to lead the Test bowling charts, followed by South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada in second and Australia’s Pat Cummins in third.
