England captain Joe Root’s stunning 2021 form has seen the Yorkshireman rise to number one Test batsman in the International Cricket Council rankings for the first time in six years.
Root previously held the number one spot back in 2015 but had drifted to ninth at the start of the year.
Since then he has been in masterful form, scoring 1,398 runs in 11 matches at a lofty average of 69.90.
There have been six centuries since the turn of the year, including three in as many matches in the ongoing series against India.
The 30-year-old has hit scores of 109, 180 not out and 121 in the past month, during which he has soared past opposite number Virat Kohli, Australia duo Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith and New Zealand captain Kane Williamson.
“I’m obviously proud to hear I’ve achieved that, it would be nice to be able to stay there now,” said Root ahead of the fourth Test with India, which starts on Thursday with the series tied at 1-1.
“Hopefully the form of my life is still to come, but I certainly feel very good at the moment and need to stay focused.”
For the first time in almost four years, Kohli is not his side’s top-rated batsman. After just one half-century in seven innings since arriving in England, he has been usurped by opener Rohit Sharma at number five.
Meanwhile, Root will have a new vice-captain this week with Moeen Ali stepping into the role with Jos Buttler absent to attend the birth of his second child. “Moeen is a natural leader. He’s someone who the team gravitate towards for a number of reasons,” added Root.
“He’s got a brilliant cricket brain, he’s done wonderfully well when he’s done the role in domestic cricket and last year for England in the short format. He’s absolutely the right man for the role.”

England promotion ‘excites’ Moeen
Moeen Ali said his appointment as England vice-captain for the fourth Test against India starting today was an example of the “beauty of sport” after he was not even in the squad at the start of the series. The off-spinning all-rounder finds himself deputy to Joe Root at the Oval with Jos Buttler on paternity leave and Ben Stokes still unavailable due to mental health issues. “It sounds amazing,” Moeen told reporters yesterday.
“Obviously to captain or vice-captain England in any form is huge and I’m very excited. I’m obviously not hoping for Joe to go off the field but if he does go off, I’m looking forward to the role.”
Moeen found himself back in the fold for India’s 151-run win in the second Test at Lord’s before keeping his place for England’s innings and 76-run victory at Headingley last week that levelled the five-match series at 1-1. “I think that’s the beauty of sport in one way,” said Moeen, who has captaincy experience with county side Worcestershire.
“I know Jos isn’t here, Ben isn’t here, I know they would have done it if they were here, so I’m pretty realistic in that respect.
“But to be given the role is great and I do speak a lot to the players and we bounce ideas off each other a lot.”
James Anderson has done the job before, while England opener Rory Burns has captained Surrey. But Root hailed 34-year-old all-rounder Moeen as a “natural leader” with a “brilliant cricket brain”.
An example of Moeen’s tactical qualities came in the first over of the third Test when, having advised Anderson to bowl a fuller length, the England great turned him to him in celebration when he dismissed KL Rahul for a duck - the start of an India collapse to 78 all out. “He just asked me if he was bowling a little bit too short and I said ‘maybe just a little bit’. It’s scary because Jimmy Anderson has got so many wickets and telling him to pitch it up is not easy. Next ball he pitched it up and he (Rahul) nicked it,” recalled Moeen. “It’s amazing he’s even asking me my opinion on these things, because he’s obviously the greatest bowler we’ve ever had,” said Moeen of Anderson, whose career tally of 630 Test wickets has been surpassed only by two retired spinners in Australia’s Shane Warne (708 wickets) and Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralitharan (800).  “So that gives me a lot more confidence, that I can mention something to Jimmy.”
But Moeen stressed he couldn’t rely on his new position to keep his place in the side ahead of an Ashes tour of Australia overshadowed by uncertainty regarding Covid protocols. “The next two games are quite big from an individual point, to put some performances in and keep my spot in the team,” he explained. “That’s all I want to do, initially. “With Australia, there’s a lot more information we need, as players and families, for us to even think about going there really.”