James Anderson: England bowler returns to top of Test rankings
- Published
James Anderson is the fifth-oldest bowler to be ranked Test number one
England's leading wicket-taker James Anderson has returned to the top of the International Cricket Council's Test bowling rankings.
The seamer returned match figures of 7-54 in the first-Test win in New Zealand to end Australia captain Pat Cummins' four-year reign at the top.
At 40 years 207 days, Anderson is the oldest bowler to hold top spot since Australian Clarrie Grimmett in 1936.
It is the sixth time he has been number one, most recently in 2018.
India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin moves into second after taking 14 wickets in the first two Tests against Australia, while Cummins drops to third.
Anderson has 682 Test wickets, third on the all-time list behind Sri Lanka spinner Muttiah Muralitharan (800) and late Australia great Shane Warne (708).
During the first Test in Mount Maunganui Anderson and Stuart Broad became the most successful bowling partnership in Test history, passing Warne and Glenn McGrath's record of 1,001 wickets.
The second Test starts in Wellington on Friday (22:00 GMT Thursday).
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