Sangakkara replaces De Villiers at top of rankings
Sri Lankan veteran Kumar Sangakkara has replaced South Africa's AB de Villiers at the top of the International Cricket Council's rankings for Test batsmen.
Sri Lankan veteran Kumar Sangakkara has replaced South Africa's AB de Villiers at the top of the International Cricket Council's rankings for Test batsmen.
Sangakkara's promotion has come on the back of a fine double century in a seven-wicket triumph over Pakistan in last week's series opener in Galle. De Villiers, meanwhile, perished for a mere seven in the ongoing one-off fixture against Zimbabwe in Harare.
This is the third time the stalwart left-hander has clinched the number one berth, having leapfrogged Australians Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke in December 2007 and November 2012 respectively.
He has, in total, spent 81 matches as the top-ranked Test batsman. West Indians Garry Sobers and Viv Richards held the coveted position for 189 and 179 fixtures respectively.
Spinner Rangana Herath, meanwhile, has moved into the top five of the ICC's rankings for Test bowlers on the back of nine wickets in the first Test at the Galle International Stadium. Fellow slow bowler Dilruwan Perera has climbed five positions to 24 after enjoying seven wickets in the same match.
The second and final Test will get underway at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground on Thursday. Three ODIs will follow.
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