Pacer Siraj attains career-best 15th position in ICC rankings following The Oval show

DUBAI: India pacer Mohammed Siraj has attained a career-best 15th position in the latest ICC Test rankings following his match-winning performance in the fifth and final Test against England at The Oval.

Siraj jumped 12 spots following his nine wickets in the match, including a five-for, as India defeated the hosts by six runs in a thriller to draw the series 2-2.

With England requiring 35 runs on the last day with four wickets in hand, a charged-up Siraj, who was adjudged ‘Player of the Match’, accounted for three batters, including the last dismissal of Gus Atkinson, to earn India a remarkable win.Siraj’s highest ICC ranking until now was 16th, achieved in January last year. He has now broken into the ICC Test top 15, joining Jasprit Bumrah as one of two Indian bowlers in the elite list.

India’s pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who played three Tests to manage his workload, continues to lead the charts with 889 points.Prasidh Krishna also attained a career-best 59th position after he along with Siraj became only the second India pair to take four or more wickets each in both innings of a Test, a feat earlier accomplished by spinners Bishan Bedi and Erapalli Prasanna against Australia in Delhi in 1969.

India opener Yashasvi Jaiswal returned to the top-5 in the Test batting rankings following his second century in the series at The Oval.

Jaiswal rose three spots and is on 792 points, while the only other India batter in the top-10 is Rishabh Pant, who has slipped one spot to eighth as he could not play the fifth Test duIn the bowling department, England fast bowlers Atkinson and Josh Tongue have also attained career-best positions after finishing with eight wickets each in the match.