India set to lose rating points after draws against NZ

Dubai:

Thanks to their two draws against visiting New Zealand, India are set to drop rating points irrespective of how the third Test in Nagpur pans out, according to the latest ICC rankings released here on Friday.

World number one India entered the three-Test series with a clear 52-point lead over eighth-placed New Zealand but the hosts' failure to record a win in any of the last two Tests meant they will now drop points.

If India win the third Test, they will concede one rating point and will slip to 129 points, while New Zealand will rise to 80 ratings points after gaining two points.

In the event of a New Zealand win, they will earn nine ratings points which will take them to 87, while India will drop to 124 after losing six ratings points.

In case of a drawn series, India will drop four ratings points, while New Zealand will pocket five.

Meanwhile, Chris Gayle, on the back of his monumental triple century in the first Test against Sri Lanka, rocketed into the top 10 for the first time in his career.

Gayle's knock lifted the 31-year-old Jamaican from 21st to 10th position in the latest ICC player rankings for Test batsmen. The former West Indies captain earned 95 points ratings for his triple ton.

South Africa's Jacques Kallis and Hashim Amla, Pakistan's Younus Khan and New Zealand opener Brendon McCullum also moved upwards in the batting chart.

In the ICC player rankings for Test bowlers, India's S Sreesanth moved up by two places to be placed at 29th. Dale Steyn sits pretty at the top while English spinner Graeme Swann is in second spot.