Mitchell Johnson has leapt five places to be ranked the world's fourth-best bowler in the latest update to the Reliance ICC player rankings for Test bowlers.
Johnson destroyed South Africa with career-best figures of 12-127 in the opening Test at Centurion last week, and has taken 49 wickets at an average of 13 in his past six Test matches.
South Africa and Australia now occupy the top four positions in the bowling ranks, with Dale Steyn taking back the No.1 position from teammate Vernon Philander, while Ryan Harris remains consistent in third.
Philander had held top spot for 55 days but his match return of 1-97 at Centurion saw him drop 11 ranking points to fall back behind Steyn.
Steyn's Centurion returns of 4-78 and 2-61 in either innings saw him remain steady with 901 ranking points. The
South African spearhead took top spot in July 2009 and spent 187 matches, or 1630 days, as the top-ranked bowler until Philander overtook him last December.
Peter Siddle sits in sixth position, while Lyon holds down 19th spot – one behind Ben Hilfenhaus who remains in the rankings despite not having played a Test since December 2012.
Lyon's 614 ranking points for 19th spot are light-years ahead of South Africa's first-choice spinner Robin Peterson, who sits in 64th spot with 259 points.
New Zealand’s Tim Southee moved up to a career-best ninth following his match haul of 5-143 in the Wellington Test against India. Southee is now on 757 ratings points, just 10 behind eighth-ranked teammate Trent Boult.
In the batsmen rankings, Blackcaps skipper Brendon McCullum’s spectacular match-saving knock of 302 in the Wellington Test against India has helped him jump eight places to a career-best 12th.
McCullum, who became the first New Zealand batsman to score a triple hundred, helped draw the second and final Test in Wellington on Tuesday, giving NZ a 1-0 series win.
McCullum shares 12th position with Australia’s David Warner, who moves up three spots of his 115 in the second innings in Centurion.
Meanwhile, India’s Virat Kohli has moved up two places to a career-high of ninth, following knocks of 38 and an unbeatedn 105 in Wellington, to break into the top 10 for the first time.
Kohli joins seventh-ranked teammate Cheteshwar Pujara (down by one) as the only two India batsmen inside the top 10.
Alex Doolan's gutsy knocks of 27 and 89 on debut have seem him enter the table in 59th spot, while Shaun Marsh returned to the table in 63rd position following scores of 148 and 44.
South Africa’s AB de Villiers continues to top the batting table, followed by Kumar Sangakkara in second position and Shivnarine Chanderpaul of
West Indies in third place.
