Ashwin back to No. 2 in Test rankings

Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin retained his second spot in the ICC Test Rankings for bowlers as he leapfrogged Sri Lanka's Rangana Herath following India's historic win against Sri Lanka at Galle.

As a result, India once again occupied top two spots among bowlers, with Ravindra Jadeja retaining the top spot.

The development came after the two star spinners bagged three wickets apiece to help India register a huge 304-run win over Sri Lanka in the opening Test at the Galle and take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Meanwhile, India opener Shikhar Dhawan's scores of 190 and 14 have lifted the left-hander 21 slots to 39th position, while pace bowler Mohammad Shami has gained one spot to reach 23rd rank.

Sri Lanka all-rounder Angelo Mathews has gained two places to reach 17th position after scores of 83 and two at Galle, while batsman Dimuth Karunaratne (up three places to 36th) and pace bowler Nuwan Pradeep (up three places to a career-best 30th) are the others to move up the rankings.

England all-rounder Ben Stokes has moved up to take career-best positions in both batting and bowling, after a fine show in the third Test against South Africa at The Oval, which his side won by 239 runs on Monday to take a 2-1 lead in the four-match series.

Stokes has moved up 12 places to joint-25th position in the rankings for batsmen with scores of 112 and 31, while also gaining two places to reach 19th position in the list for bowlers after grabbing one for 26 and two for 51. His effort also sees him overtake South Africa's Vernon Philander to take fifth position in the list of all-rounders.

Jonny Bairstow has gained three slots to reach ninth position with scores of 36 and 63, opening batsman Alastair Cook has moved up three places to 12th position with scores of 88 and seven, while in the bowlers' rankings, James Anderson (up one place to joint-third) and Moeen Ali (up one place to 18th) have made upward movement.

Debutants Tom Westley (70th) and Toby Roland-Jones (54th) have entered the rankings in style among batsmen and bowlers, respectively.

For South Africa, left-handed opener Dean Elgar's innings of eight and 136 have lifted him three places to 15th position while left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj has gained four slots and attained a career-best 22nd position after his four wickets at The Oval.

-ANI