South Africa Dethrone Australia as World No. 1 Test Team After Cape Town Win, Climb to Second in WTC Table

South Africa have won the three-match Test series against Australia 2-1 and dethroned them as the world No. 1 Test team. In the final Test at Cape Town, Australia had a 100-run lead in the first innings, yet South Africa still won the match by a big margin of 176 runs.

The win took defending world champions South Africa into the top two of the ICC World Test Championship table as well. It was a double blow for Australia, who lost both the series and their place at the top of the rankings in the same match.

South Africa take the No. 1 ranking

By winning the final Test, South Africa reached the top of the Test rankings with 124 rating points. Australia, who were No. 1 till now, dropped to second with 122 rating points after the defeat, while New Zealand are third and India fourth.

The latest ICC Test rankings read: South Africa 124, Australia 122, New Zealand 106, India 105, England 102, Bangladesh 77, Sri Lanka 75, West Indies 74, Pakistan 71 and Zimbabwe 17. The two-point gap at the top shows how close the contest for No. 1 remains.

Australia slip to third in the WTC table

Losing to South Africa cost Australia in the World Test Championship as well, with the team slipping to third in the points table. The 2023 champions have 69.23 percent points after 13 matches, while South Africa have 71.43 percent points.

New Zealand lead the championship table with 72.22 percent points, ahead of South Africa in second and Australia in third. The tight percentages at the top mean the next series in this cycle could change the order again.

What comes next in the cycle

Australia's next series is against New Zealand in December-January, a contest that will directly affect the top of both the rankings and the championship table. Before that, New Zealand host India at home from November 19 in a two-match Test series that is important for the Indian team.

India are fourth in the championship table with 51.52 percent points from 11 matches, and will look to close the gap in the New Zealand series. Early next year, Australia will also tour India for a five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, another contest with big championship implications.