Who wants to be No. 1 ?

8/3/2019 Who wants to be No. 1 ?

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Who wants to be No. 1?

First India, now England. For the second time in eight months, the No. 1 Test team has

lost each Test of an away series. Not just lost, in fact, but has been drubbed,

humiliated and whitewashed to such a degree that one may be forced to wonderwhether the top ranking carries with it a peculiar, collapse-inducing jinx, or whether

the entire system of ICC rankings is a load of hogwash.

Crucially though, both the crushing defeats came on overseas tours, which leads to the

perhaps more reasonable assumption that while the top teams are formidable

opponents at home, they are struggling miserably in unfamiliar conditions so much so,

that any claims at world domination currently seem as unfounded and fanciful as the

idea that India will someday win a Test series in Australia. (Ten series have come and

gone since India's first tour of the country in 1947-48, yet a series success has proved

elusive.)

Of course, winning matches away from home, never mind a whole series, has always

been tough. But the last team that could truly claim to be the world's best was theAustralia of Steve Waugh, Matthew Hayden, Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist, Glenn

McGrath and Shane Warne. And their reputation was built not just on home successes,

but hard-fought wins in tough conditions in the West Indies (2003), Sri Lanka (2004),

New Zealand (2005), South Africa (2006, 2008-09), and the 'Final Frontier' of India

(2004-05).


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The new contenders for the top spot, thus, have much to prove before they can lay

claim to the mantle vacated by the Australians. No one, it seems however, is quite

ready yet to grab the bull by the horns.

Currently leading the rankings though only just are England, who achieved thehonour after a 4-0 series sweep against then-No. 1 India, which came on the back of a

home win over Sri Lanka and more significantly, a first Ashes victory in Australia in 24years. There was talk that England had found their best-ever Test side and that it was

perhaps time at last for a period of English domination. Their first tour since on the

subcontinent (or at least, in similar conditions in the UAE) and suddenly the batting

line-up, boasting of the likes of Alastair Cook, Jonathan Trott and Kevin Pietersen,

finds itself battling old demons against spin.

England will want to avoid over-reaction, given that this was their first series defeat

since 2009 and the bowling unit including two spinners still did itself credit against

Pakistan. Andrew Strauss' team might even hold onto the top spot, with West Indies

and current No. 2 South Africa due to visit England later this year. However, given that

it has been more than ten years since England last won a Test series in the

subcontinent (in Pakistan in 2000-01 and Sri Lanka in 2001), the Test series in SriLanka and later India will provide a better indication of just how good this England

team can be.

India, meanwhile, will be desperate to return to the comforts of home after a torridrun of eight consecutive overseas Tests without victory. Luckily for them, their next

away series won't be until 2013, which means they do have a realistic chance of

returning to the top spot. However, few are likely to be fooled this time around.

Either side of India becoming No. 1 in 2009, there were at least series wins in England

(2007) and New Zealand (2009) and a creditable draw in South Africa (2010-11) to

savour. Three years on, half of that side is on the verge of retirement, and there are

question marks over the replacements as well as skipper MS Dhoni. With India set to

enter a period of transition and it will not be easy to fill the gaps left by SachinTendulkar, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Zaheer Khan and with their bowling and

fielding yet to achieve world-class standard, the focus is likely to be on rebuilding

rather than global supremacy.

Pakistan can make a rightful claim to being genuine contenders, having won eight and

lost just one of 15 Tests since Misbah-ul-Haq took over in October 2010. However, the

only top-five team they have faced in that run is England, and none of the matches have

been played away from the subcontinent or the Middle East, barring Zimbabwe. Thoughone of the more stable Pakistan sides in recent memory, like India, they too need to

show their worth in more testing away conditions, and upcoming tours of South Africa

and New Zealand should provide an opportunity to continue down the path ofredemption since the dark days of the spot-fixing scandal.

Then there's South Africa, who could actually end up with the No. 1 ranking and the

accompanying ICC jackpot should they whitewash New Zealand at home 3-0. However,

as always, the Proteas seem to falter just when on the cusp of greatness. A chance to

beat an in-transition Australia, albeit again at home, went begging last year, and even a

home series win over an even-weaker Sri Lanka was tempered by a 208-run defeat at

Kingsmead. Armed with talented batsmen and a potent pace bowling line-up, not to


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forget a rare spinner in Imran Tahir, South Africa, nevertheless, need to maximize

their potential more consistently before the ghost of the mental fragility that has long

been associated with them is exorcised.

Consistency was a problem for Australia as the manic Test in Cape Town and ademoralizing loss to New Zealand in Hobart showed until they came up against an

insipid India. The comprehensive wins that followed show that Australia are asskipper Michael Clarke put it "on the way up". Of course, they will face tougher

opponents than India, including an Indian side in India, and there are still relevant

doubts over the batting, especially when Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey do finally

call it a day. However, they once again seem to have unearthed a slew of highly

promising fast bowlers in Pat Cummins, James Pattison and Mitchell Starc, to go with

the likes of Ben Hilfenhaus, Ryan Harris and Peter Siddle; while ominously, the team

seems to have found its unbeatable spirit under an increasingly comfortable Clarke.

Any of these top five sides could end the year as No. 1, given that only seven points

separate the top four in the current rankings, while fifth-placed Pakistan have reduced

the gap with England to only 10. However, until one of them shows the same kind of

character away from home and the Aussies look the most likely as of now the titleof the world's best Test side is still up for grabs.

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Who wants to be No. 1 ?