England have become the number one ranked team in the world for the first time after knocking Australia off the top of the ICC women’s rankings ahead of this winter’s Ashes.
Heather Knight’s side, who won the World Cup in July, have 128.47 points, with second-placed Australia on 128.43 points.
It is the first time Australia have slipped from first place since the rankings were introduced in 2015.
The Ashes series starts on 22 October.
“It kind of shows where we’ve come from as a team and how far we’ve gone,” Knight told BBC South West.
“There’s not a lot in it between the teams – you saw that in the World Cup in our group match.
“It’s going to be such an exciting series between the number one and two in the world, and I’m sure whoever wins will make it to the top of the rankings, so it’ll add a bit of spice in there.”
| ICC Women’s Team Rankings |
|---|
| 1. England |
| 2. Australia |
| 3. New Zealand |
| 4. India |
| 5. West Indies |
| 6. South Africa |
| 7. Pakistan |
| 8. Sri Lanka |
| 9. Bangladesh |
| 10. Ireland |
Source: BBC Sport
