Abbas moves into top 20 with fine show at Lord's
• Amir, Hasan and Asad gain in latest Test rankings update; Alastair Cook also moves up
• Pakistan will overtake England in Test team rankings if they complete 2-0 series win
Mohammad Abbas leads a trio of Pakistan fast bowlers who have moved up in the MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings after contributing in a memorable nine-wicket victory over England in the Lord’s Test that ended on Sunday.
The 28-year-old Abbas’s player of the match haul of eight for 64 has helped him gain nine spots and reach a career-best 20th position after only seven Tests while Mohammad Amir and Hasan Ali have also moved up after creditable shows in the first of two Tests.
Left-arm bowler Amir’s five wickets in the match have lifted him five places to 32nd position while Hasan Ali has gained 26 slots to reach 61st position after taking four first innings wickets. This is the career-best in Test matches for Hasan, who is currently ranked fourth in ODIs after having attained top rank in the format in October last year.
Among their batsmen, Asad Shafiq has risen six slots to 26th place after slamming 59 in his only innings of the match, while Harris Sohail has moved up 13 places to 80th rank after scores of 39 and 39 not out. Babar Azam, who was forced to retire hurt after being struck on the wrist by a Ben Stokes delivery in the first innings and ruled out of further part in the series, has moved up 14 places to 86th position after his 68-run contribution.
For England, Alastair Cook, a former number-two batsman, has gained one place to reach 15th position after scores of 70 and one while fast bowler James Anderson has retained his second slot with four wickets in the match but lost two points and is now eight points behind top-ranked Kagiso Rabada of South Africa.
Pakistan’s unbeatable lead in the series also gives them a chance to overtake England in the MRF Tyres ICC Test Team Rankings. A 2-0 series result will take them from seventh to fifth position with 95 points, while pushing England down to seventh position and 93 points. England started the series on 97 points while Pakistan were on 88.
The Test team rankings, unlike the ODI and T20I rankings, are updated after the end of the series and the Test predictor function is available here.
MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings (as of 28 May, after the Lord’s Test):
Batsmen (top 10)
| Rank | (+/-) | Player | Team | Pts | Avge | Highest Rating |
| 1 | ( - ) | Steve Smith | Aus | 929 | 61.37 | 947 v SA at Durban 2018 |
| 2 | ( - ) | Virat Kohli | Ind | 912! | 53.4 | 912 v SA at Johannesburg 2018 |
| 3 | ( - ) | Joe Root | Eng | 854 | 52.34 | 917 v Aus at Trent Bridge 2015 |
| 4 | ( - ) | Kane Williamson | NZ | 847 | 50.35 | 893 v Aus at Perth 2015 |
| 5 | ( - ) | David Warner | Aus | 820 | 48.2 | 880 v NZ at Perth 2015 |
| 6 | ( - ) | AB de Villiers | SA | 813 | 50.66 | 935 v Aus at Port Elizabeth 2014 |
| 7 | ( - ) | C. Pujara | Ind | 810 | 50.51 | 888 v SL at Nagpur 2017 |
| 8 | ( - ) | Dean Elgar | SA | 784! | 42.58 | 784 v Aus at Johannesburg 2018 |
| 9 | ( - ) | Aiden Markram | SA | 759*! | 55.55 | 759 v Aus at Johannesburg 2018 |
| 10 | ( - ) | Hashim Amla | SA | 726 | 48.03 | 907 v Pak at Abu Dhabi 2013 |
Other selected rankings
| Rank | (+/-) | Player | Team | Pts | Avge | Highest Rating |
| 15 | (+1) | Alastair Cook | Eng | 679 | 45.65 | 874 v Ind at Kolkata 2012 |
| 26 | (+6) | Asad Shafiq | Pak | 616 | 39.74 | 758 v Eng at Lord's 2016 |
| 80 | (+13) | Haris Sohail | Pak | 392* | 41.71 | 416 v SL at Abu Dhabi 2017 |
| 86 | (+14) | Babar Azam | Pak | 374*! | 28 | 374 v Eng at Lord's 2018 |
Bowlers (top 10)
| Rank | (+/-) | Player | Team | Pts | Avge | Highest Rating |
| 1 | ( - ) | Kagiso Rabada | SA | 897 | 21.59 | 902 v Aus at Port Elizabeth 2018 |
| 2 | ( - ) | James Anderson | Eng | 889 | 27.34 | 896 v Win at Lord's 2017 |
| 3 | ( - ) | Vernon Philander | SA | 845 | 21.46 | 912 v Ind at Johannesburg 2013 |
| 4 | ( - ) | Ravindra Jadeja | Ind | 844 | 23.73 | 899 v Aus at Ranchi 2017 |
| 5 | ( - ) | R. Ashwin | Ind | 803 | 25.56 | 904 v Eng at Mumbai 2016 |
| 6= | ( - ) | Morne Morkel | SA | 800! | 27.66 | 800 v Aus at Johannesburg 2018 |
| ( - ) | Pat Cummins | Aus | 800*! | 23.81 | 800 v SA at Johannesburg 2018 | |
| 8 | ( - ) | Trent Boult | NZ | 795 | 27.84 | 825 v Eng at Lord's 2015 |
| 9 | ( - ) | Rangana Herath | SL | 777 | 28.18 | 867 v Zim at Harare 2016 |
| 10 | ( - ) | Neil Wagner | NZ | 765 | 28.26 | 785 v Win at Wellington 2017 |
Other selected rankings
| Rank | (+/-) | Player | Team | Pts | Avge | Highest Rating |
| 20 | (+9) | M. Abbas | Pak | 644*! | 16.62 | 644 v Eng at Lord's 2018 |
| 32 | (+5) | M. Amir | Pak | 514* | 31.16 | 658 v Eng at Lord's 2010 |
| 61 | (+26) | Hasan Ali | Pak | 247*! | 27.3 | 247 v Eng at Lord's 2018 |
| 96= | (+8) | Shadab Khan | Pak | 107*! | 48 | 107 v Eng at Lord's 2018 |
All-rounders (top five)
| Rank | (+/-) | Player | Team | Pts | Highest Rating |
| 1 | ( - ) | Shakib Al Hasan | Ban | 421 | 489 v Aus at Mirpur 2017 |
| 2 | ( - ) | Ravindra Jadeja | Ind | 391 | 438 v SL at Colombo (SSC) 2017 |
| 3 | ( - ) | Vernon Philander | SA | 372 | 376 v Aus at Cape Town 2014 |
| 4 | ( - ) | R. Ashwin | Ind | 368 | 493 v Eng at Mohali 2016 |
| 5 | ( - ) | Ben Stokes | Eng | 334/* | 396 v Win at Lord's 2017 |
*indicates provisional rating; a batsman qualifies for a full rating after playing 40 Test innings; a bowler qualifies for a full rating when he reaches 100 Test wickets.
! indicates career-highest rating
For more information on player rankings, please click here.