Lara returns to top of ICC batting ranking

Brian Lara has regained the number one position in the Test batting rankings despite West Indies losing their home Test series against South Africa.

His innings of 176 in the third Test in Barbados lifted him two places above South Africa’s Jacques Kallis and Indian Rahul Dravid.{{more}}

Andre Nel, meanwhile, has moved up 12 places to eighth in the bowling list after his 6-32 in the same match.

Glenn McGrath remains at number one ahead of Muttiah Muralitharan.

But Lara’s status will provide little consolation for West Indies, with former fast bowlers Michael Holding and Joel Garner rounding on the team in the wake of their defeat at the Kensington Oval.

“We have a basic lack of discipline – it is something that is sadly lacking in our game,” said Holding.

Garner also criticised the West Indies Cricket Board for failing to halt the game’s decline in the region.

“The game has been going downhill for years and no-one has decided to take the bull by the horns,” he said.

“All the emphasis seems to be on the administration, not on the field.”

Holding and Garner were team-mates in the all-conquering West Indies side of the late ’70s and early ’80s.

In those days they boasted half a dozen world-class fast bowlers, but West Indies have struggled to find a consistent spearhead since the retirement of Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh.

“Our current team needs to be more competitive, but it all starts off the field. We are getting a lot of talk but not much action,” Holding told the Barbados Nation newspaper.

“Coming here and being totally outplayed… they have to be rock bottom or even lower.”

Top 10 Test batsmen

1 Brian Lara (WI) 886 pts

2 Jacques Kallis (SA) 882

3 Rahul Dravid (Ind) 872

4 Ricky Ponting (Aus) 863

5 Virender Sehwag (Ind) 848

6 Damien Martyn (Aus) 836

7 Adam Gilchrist (Aus) 819

8 Inzamam-ul-Haq (Pkn) 794

9 Younis Khan (Pkn) 757

10 Andrew Strauss (Eng) 751

Top 10 Test bowlers

1 Glenn McGrath (Aus) 897 pts

2 Muttiah Muralitharan (SL) 834

3 Shaun Pollock (SA) 812

4 Makhaya Ntini (SA) 801

5 Shoaib Akhtar (Pkn) 786

6 Shane Warne (Aus) 771

7 Anil Kumble (Ind) 766

8 Andre Nel (SA) 759

8 Jason Gillespie (Aus) 739

9 Steve Harmison (Eng) 717