Sports reporter:
Bangladesh batter Towhid Hridoy has made a eye-popping 115-place jump to 60th in the latest ICC Test batting rankings following his impressive performance in the Sylhet Test against the West Indies.
Hridoy smashed 242 not out in the first innings before scoring an 82 which helped Bangladesh eke out a draw in the second Test and denied West Indies the series sweep.
While his 242 not out was the individual best for Bangladesh in this format, he became the country’s only cricketer to hit a double century and a half-century in the same test. Needless to say, his overall 334 runs is also the highest individual scorer for Bangladesh in a particular Test.
Hridoy came to play the second Test with just 54 runs in two Tests and was also in danger to loss his place after playing two wayward shots in the first Test, which West Indies won by eight wickets.
His shot selection was center of all criticism but team management kept faith on him, giving another chance for the second Test. And he made the rest a history.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s Rahmat Shah has created history by becoming the first cricketer from his country to break into the top 10 of any category in the ICC Test rankings.
Rahmat climbed six places to seventh in the Test batting rankings after scoring a brilliant 173 in the opening match of Afghanistan’s two-Test series against Zimbabwe in Sharjah. He also achieved a career-best rating of 735 points.
The 31-year-old’s fifth Test century, and second this year, saw him move ahead of India’s Shubman Gill, South Africa’s Aiden Markram and Sri Lanka’s Kamindu Mendis.
The achievement comes shortly after Afghanistan reached sixth place in the ICC ODI team rankings following their success in a tri-nation series involving Zimbabwe and Bangladesh.
Several players also made significant gains following the conclusion of the two-match Test series between Bangladesh and the West Indies.
West Indies left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican, named Player of the Series after claiming 16 wickets, moved up 11 places to joint 19th in the Test bowling rankings. He also recorded a career-best rating of 665 points.
West Indies all-rounder Justin Greaves climbed one place to joint eighth in the Test all-rounders’ rankings after scoring 46 and 51 in the series and taking one wicket.
In the batting rankings, West Indies’ Kavem Hodge moved up 12 places to 52nd, while wicketkeeper-batter Amir Jangoo gained 28 places to reach 62nd.
