vIndianz.com (19 Feb, 2010) — Dubai: India on Thursday retained their No. 1 status in Test cricket after the thrilling innings and 57 runs victory over South Africa in Kolkata, which also entitles them to $175,000 (approximately Rs 80,00,000) given to the team that tops the chart at the annual cut-off date.
With this victory, Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men also ended Australia’s seven-year run of finishing on top spot at the annual cut-off date.
Consequentially, India will retain the ICC Championships mace which they won after beating Sri Lanka 2-0 in the home series in December last year, besides pocketing the $175,000 prize money which is presented to the side that reaches the April 1 cut-off date in top spot for the year 2009-2010.
The 1-1 series result means that the pre-series status-quo in terms of positions on the table is maintained though India (124) lost one rating point while South Africa has stayed second on 120 points. Australia (116) are third in the ICC Test chart, followed by Sri Lanka (115) and England (107).
The rankings were introduced in June 2003. It has been a steady climb by the Indian team as they were ranked sixth in 2004. They were placed third in 2005 and 2006 and finished second last year.
For South Africa, it was heartbreak for the second successive year. Last year they needed a series win against Australia to finish at the top of the Test table, but lost the home series 1-2 and finished nine ratings points behind Ricky Ponting’s side. This year, a series win again would have fetched them the top spot.
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