The famous Ashes series of 2005 turned when a confident Australian side made an ill-fated decision to put England into bat first in the second test, fancying that England's batsmen would embarras themselves, as they had done in the previous match. They didn't, and England won the series. Now, in England's current series against India, the hosts have surrendered their initiative in a similar fashion, although they presently retain a series lead. The series is turning out to be a contest between two flawed sides: England can, as usual, bowl well in English conditions; for once, India also have a strong seam attack; but few players on either side look capable of batting well, Virat Kolhi the most notable exception. England remain series favourites, but to complete a victory, they're surely going to need to discover some batsmen able to score runs. A defeat in the the third test would have knocked India off the top of my world rankings: as it is, they have extended their lead, though it's still not guaranteed to survive the series.
India 200 +13
South Africa 179
Australia 166
New Zealand 144
Sri Lanka 125
England 110 -13
Pakistan 40
West Indies 15
Bangladesh -99
Zimbabwe -260
Ireland -295
Afghanistan -325
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