Afghanistan gear up for momentous first men's Test

• Asghar Stanikzai: “It’s a great moment for us as we embark on our Test journey. To be competing against the best on the Test rankings table is something to be proud of”

• Ajinkya Rahane: “It’s a privilege to be playing in Afghanistan’s first Test match. It’s a historic moment for them and an opportunity for us to be part of the occasion”

• For more on Afghanistan’s historic first Test against India in Bengaluru and continuous coverage, log on to icc-cricket.com

• Mendis, Dowrich, Chase and Kumara gain in rankings update after Port of Spain Test

It will be a dream debut for newest Test nation Afghanistan, as they take on the world’s top-ranked team, India, in their first Test in Bengaluru from Thursday.

Afghanistan, who have fast established themselves as a force to reckon with in the shorter formats, will become the 12th side to figure in men’s Test cricket after Ireland debuted against Pakistan last month. Both Ireland and Afghanistan were granted Full Member and Test status last June.

The one-off Test against India will be Afghanistan’s first step towards being ranked on the MRF Tyres ICC Test Team Rankings and a chance for their gifted players to enter the individual rankings after making a mark in limited overs cricket. India stand to lose three points if they lose this match but their number-one position is under no threat, thanks to a 13-point lead over South Africa.

Afghanistan captain Asghar Stanikzai: “It’s a great moment for us as we embark on our Test journey. To be playing our first Test against India is a great honour and we hope to give a good account of ourselves.

“To be competing against the best on the Test rankings table is something to be proud of and we will try to do our best in whatever chances we get and exhibit the skills the players possess individually as well as collectively as a team.”

India captain Ajinkya Rahane: “It’s a privilege to be playing in Afghanistan’s first Test match. It’s a historic moment for them and an opportunity for us to be part of the occasion. 

“They have a fine team and some talented players who have proved themselves in shorter formats. I’m sure they are looking forward to do the same in Test cricket. On behalf of the Indian team, I wish them all the best.”

India are without regular captain and second-ranked Virat Kohli for this Test but the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara (sixth), Rahane (18th) and opener Lokesh Rahul (19th) in batting and former top-ranked spinners Ravindra Jadeja (fourth) and Ravichandran Ashwin (fifth) among bowlers will be looking to improve their positions on the MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings.

Afghanistan’s spinners will be in focus too as Rashid Khan (top-ranked in T20Is, second in ODIs) and Mohammad Nabi (eighth in T20Is, 16th in ODIs) look to make a mark in Test cricket. Among batsmen, Rahmat Shah is their leading player in ODIs at 32nd position.

Afghanistan squad today began their training in Bangalore ahead of the #HistoricTest match against India by taking part in a practice session#INDvsAFG #AFGvsIND #PhenomenalRise pic.twitter.com/gymeFCvKyt

— Afghan Cricket Board (@ACBofficials) June 10, 2018

Meanwhile, the first of three Tests between the Windies and Sri Lanka in Port of Spain has seen Kusal Mendis move towards the top 10 with his valiant second innings century that came in a 226-run loss, their first to the Windies in 10 years.

The opener’s second innings score of 102 has lifted him three places to 16th position while Windies player Shane Dowrich has moved up 20 places to 66th position after compiling an unbeaten 125 in the first innings that came in a 468-minute vigil and earned him the Player of the Match award.

Among bowlers, Shannon Gabriel (up one place to 23rd), Jason Holder (up one place to 35th) and Roston Chase (up four places to 51st) are the main gainers for the home side while for Sri Lanka, Suranga Lakmal (up one place to 30th), Lahiru Kumara (up 14 places to 54th) and Angelo Mathews (up one place to 72nd) are the ones to move up.

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 Team Rankings (as of 11 June, before the one-off India-Afghanistan Test match in Bengaluru)

Rank	Team	Points
1	India	125
2	South Africa	112
3	Australia	106
4	New Zealand	102
5	England	97
6	Sri Lanka	94
7	Pakistan	88
8	Bangladesh	75
9	Windies	67
10	Zimbabwe	2

Also played: Ireland – 1 match, 0 points
Yet to play their first Test: Afghanistan.

(Developed by David Kendix)

MRF Tyres ICC Test Player Rankings (as of 11 June, after the 1st Test between the Windies and Sri Lanka in Port of Spain and before the one-off Test between India and Afghanistan in Bengaluru ):

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	855	52.28	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	( - )	C. Pujara	Ind	810	50.51	888 v SL at Nagpur 2017
7	( - )	Dean Elgar	SA	784!	42.58	784 v Aus at Johannesburg 2018
8	( - )	Aiden Markram	SA	759*!	55.55	759 v Aus at Johannesburg 2018
9	( - )	Hashim Amla	SA	726	48.03	907 v Pak at Abu Dhabi 2013
10	( - )	D. Chandimal	SL	716	43.55	746 v Ban at Chittagong 2018

Other selected rankings

Rank	(+/-)	Player	Team	Pts	Avge	Highest Rating
16	(+3)	Kusal Mendis	SL	667	37.87	692 v Aus at Galle 2016
18	-1	Ajinkya Rahane	Ind	660	43.68	825 v NZ at Indore 2016
19	-1	Lokesh Rahul	Ind	657*	40.5	761 v SL at Pallekele 2017
66	(+20)	Shane Dowrich	Win	443*	27.8	447 v Pak at Jamaica 2017
86	(+1)	Dilruwan Perera	SL	355	20.66	388 v Pak at Dubai 2017

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	892	27.23	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	767	28.26	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
23	(+1)	Shannon Gabriel	Win	625*	33.85	636 v Eng at Headingley 2017
30	(+1)	Suranga Lakmal	SL	538	43.15	544 v Ind at Kolkata 2017
35	(+1)	Jason Holder	Win	499*!	37.83	499 v SL at Trinidad 2018
51	(+4)	Roston Chase	Win	313*!	44.85	313 v SL at Trinidad 2018
54	(+14)	Lahiru Kumara	SL	292*!	42.4	292 v Win at Trinidad 2018
72	(+1)	Angelo Mathews	SL	167*	52.66	246 v Ind at Colombo (SSC) 2015

All-rounders (top five)

Rank	(+/-)	Player	Team	Pts	Highest Rating
1	( - )	Shakib Al Hasan	Ban	420	489 v Aus at Mirpur 2017
2	( - )	Ravindra Jadeja	Ind	390	438 v SL at Colombo (SSC) 2017
3	( - )	Vernon Philander	SA	371	376 v Aus at Cape Town 2014
4	( - )	R. Ashwin	Ind	367	493 v Eng at Mohali 2016
5	( - )	Ben Stokes	Eng	327/*	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.

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