Rohit Sharma reaches career-best 8th spot on Test rankings, Ashwin storms into top 3

Hitman Rohit Sharma jumped six spots on the ICC rankings for Test batsmen to reach the 8th position while ace spinner Ravichandran Ashwin stormed into the top three rankings for Test bowlers following India's mammoth win against England at Motera. Rohit Sharma played a gritty knock at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad in the 3rd Test, scoring 66 runs and 25 runs in the first and second innings respectively. Rohit Sharma jumped six spots to career-best 8th position while New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson retained the number one position. 

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Ravichandran Ashwin climbed four spots to the third position in ICC's Test ranking for bowling after his phenomenal seven-wicket haul at Motera. Ashwin entered the elite club after he picked up his 400th Test wicket against England in the third Test. England's James Anderson slipped three spots to the sixth position while Stuart Broad moved one spot below to number seven on the rankings. India's pacer Jaspit Bumrah, who is also set to miss the final Test, slipped one spot in the rankings to settle in the ninth position. 

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Batting friendly pitch for 4th Test?

Now, with the growing noise over the turning pitches and demands of deduction of India's WTC points, a BCCI official in privy of the developments has said that the pitch for the fourth Test can be expected to be a 'batting beauty'. With Indian being 2-1 up in the four-match Test series and midway to the final of the World Test Championship, the hosts have allegedly ruled out the possibility of having another rank turner pitch to avoid any ICC sanction. 

"Expect a good hard surface which will be firm and even bounce. It will be a batting beauty and since its a traditional red ball match, one can expect a very high scoring contest here from March 4-8," a senior BCCI official privy to the developments told PTI on conditions of anonymity.

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England out of WTC race

As Team India steamrolled over England in the third Test of the series, Kohli's men also crushed Root & Co's hopes of qualifying for the World Test Championship finale at the Lord's with the 10 wicket win on Thursday. India's spin masters Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar Patel wreaked havoc in Ahmedabad as they dismissed England for merely 81 runs in the second innings eyeing to finish the proceedings within 2 days of the Test. 

Chasing a paltry total of 49, the Indian batsmen never looked uncomfortable as they made easy work of this small run chase as openers Rohit Sharma, and, Shubman Gill counter-attacked the English spinners with their aggressive batting display as the hosts comfortably got past the finish line by 10 wickets. Now India needs to either win or draw the final Test of the series against England to book the finale berth at Lord's against New Zealand. If India loses the fourth match, Australia will qualify for the final of the World Test Championship in June later this year. 

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