India's no. 1 Test rank under no threat

Ironically, England’s best batting performance on this tour has come with the team’s stock at its lowest. Reeling from an innings defeat in Mumbai, this recovery is admirable, though too late to alter the outcome of the series.

Few would have expected England to bat the way they have done in the first innings at Chennai in scoring 477 runs. There was ample show of both resolve and enterprise and Indian bowlers were effectively thwarted: including the rampaging R. Ashwin on his home turf.

Irrespective of what happens in this Test, however, India’s number 1 Test ranking is under no threat. When the series began, number 2 ranked England were seeking to topple the home team from this pedestal, but were hammered into submission by Virat Kohli & Co.

India’s grip on the number 1 Test ranking — which came as a blip during the series against West Indies and more durably since regaining it against New Zealand — has become tighter with every match played versus England.

The last updated ICC Test rankings (December 13, 2016) for the top 5 teams has India with 115 rating points, England and Australia on 105 rating points each, followed by Pakistan and South Africa with 102 each.

By the end of the year, Australia could move ahead of England if they beat Pakistan (which seems highly likely). Defeat for Pakistan could also mean they slip below South Africa. But what’s interesting is the narrow difference in rating points between all these teams.

In fact this year has been unusual in Test cricket with Test with several teams locked in a mighty and exciting scramble (New Zealand too were in the race till beaten 0-3 by India recently) for the number 1 Test spot.

Australia held this position for a while till they suffered an unexpected whitewash at the hands of Sri Lanka. India benefited from Australia’s setback to climb to number 1 during the series against West Indies, only to lose the position to Pakistan who came up brilliantly against England, but were toppled by India reaching red-hot form this season.

What a rollercoaster ride it has been is evident from the preceding paragraph! Of course, rating and rankings are not necessarily proof of a team’s strength. These are at best indicative, but in the absence of anything else tangible, have a value appreciated by fans as also by active players.

In the context, India reaching, slipping, then reclaiming the number 1 spot within a few months this year is not something to be sniffed at. Extend this time frame to 24 months and it makes for an exciting script since Kohli took over as captain.

In 20 Tests Kohli has captained in (before this one being played currently in Chennai), India have won 13 and lost only 3; two of them as a stand-in captain for M.S. Dhoni in 2014-15. That’s a fantastic success rate, accentuated by the fact that he has now won five series in a row.

The skeptical argument against India’s rapid rise in Test cricket in the past couple of years is that most of the matches have been played in the sub-continent, or against weak opponents like West Indies.

While this is factually correct, in my opinion it doesn’t portray an entirely true picture of how India have played in this period. The rise to eminence hasn’t been easy. There have been tough situations and opponents which the team has overcome with grit, passion and ambition.

In Sri Lanka, the team came from behind to win 2-1. Beating a strong South African team — that hadn’t lost overseas for almost a decade — even at home was a big deal.

Both New Zealand and England were loaded with talented players, Winning against them so convincingly was hardly expected; more so when the pitches haven’t been the rank turners everybody anticipated.

To decry ‘home’ wins as easy or resulting only from ‘doctored’ pitches is churlish. All teams today excel at home and face serious challenges overseas. It hardly needs to be said that India too will have their sternest tests when they travel abroad if they are to become a truly great side.

But till then, this has been a recovery and trajectory to savour.