CaribWorldNews.com – Global Caribbean Daily Newswire
West Indies fast bowler Kemar Roach moved up a whopping nine places to 38th spot when the International Cricket Council Test bowling rankings this week.The pacy Barbadian who celebrates his 22nd birthday Wednesday, played in two matches and ended the series six wickets at 31 runs per wicket. He took five wickets in the third Digicel Test Series against South Africa. His best bowling effort was 3-22 during a hostile spell in the second innings of the third Digicel Test. Overall he now has 26 wickets in seven Test at an average of 29.
West Indies’ left-arm spinner Sulieman Benn also made a climb up the ranking following his very good performances. The 28-year-old took 15 wickets in the three Tests – the most in the series – to jump three places to 31st position. Benn’s wickets came at 30 runs each and he had career-best figures of 6-81 in the third Digicel Test at Kensington Oval in Barbados. During the match Benn reached his 50th wicket in his 15th match.
The performance in the third Digicel Test was his third five-wicket haul in the last five Test matches. Benn also had a good series with the bat in the lower order making 101 runs at 20 runs per innings, including a Test-best 42 in the second innings of the first Digicel Test in Trinidad.
West Indies veteran left-hander Shiv Chanderpaul was already in the top 10 and his efforts with the bat in what was a losing cause for the Windies earned him another three places as he settles in sixth position.His innings of 22 and 71 not out in the third Digicel Test have moved him ahead of Sachin Tendulkar and Jacques Kallis in a log that is still headed by India’s Virender Sehwag. Chanderpaul made the highest score of the Digicel Series – 166 in the second match at Warner Park in St Kitts to end the series with 300 runs at an average of 75. Overall he now has 8969 runs in his 126-match career.
