R Ashwin retains No 1 spot, Bumrah moves to 4th in ICC Test rankings
Dubai, Jan 31: Senior India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin maintained the top spot, while compatriot Jasprit Bumrah jumped to fourth in the latest ICC Test bowling rankings released on Wednesday.
Ashwin, who had grabbed a match haul of six wickets in India's 28-run loss in the opening Test against England, is on 853 rating points, while pacer Bumrah, who also claimed half a dozen wickets, rose a rung to fourth.
The third Indian in the top 10 in the bowling charts is left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja at number six.
Jadeja also enjoys a healthy buffer at the head of the Test all-rounder rankings.
However, Joe Root, who has moved up to fourth place, might challenge him soon if the Englland veteran maintains his good show with the ball.
While Root is primarily known for his batting skills, the 33-year-old showcased his handy spin by taking five wickets in the Hyderabad Test. He even opened the bowling for England in the second innings.
This effort has seen Root rise to a new career-high rating on the list for Test all-rounders and seen the evergreen England star jump one place to fourth.
Root is behind Ashwin and Shakib-Al-Hasan while Axar Patel has dropped a spot to sixth.
Virat Kohli has moved to sixth and is the lone Indian among the top 10 batters while Ollie Pope, who stunned India with a magnificent 196 in the second innings, jumped a mammoth 20 places to 15th.
Pope's England teammate Ben Duckett also improved his ranking, gaining five places to 22nd after knocks of 35 and 47 against India.
Australia opener Usman Khawaja gained two places to eighth following a half-century in the opening innings of the second Test against the West Indies at the Gabba.
After their impressive performance against Australia, three West Indies quicks also improved their rankings.
Kemar Roach moved up two places to 17th, Alzarri Joseph climbed four spots to 33rd, and Shamar Joseph, who was the Player-of-the-Match at the Gabba, rose a significant 42 places to reach the 50th position in the rankings.
Big movers on the latest ICC Men's Test Player Rankings following an epic first #WTC25 contest between India and England 😯
— ICC (@ICC) January 31, 2024
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Jharkhand horror: Man kills live-in partner, chops body into 40 pieces
Ranchi (PTI): A 25-year-old man, who works as a butcher, allegedly strangled to death his live-in partner and chopped her body into 40 to 50 pieces in a forested area in Jharkhand’s Khunti district, police said on Wednesday.
The accused, identified as Naresh Bhengra, was arrested.
The matter came to light after around a fortnight after the killing when a stray dog was found with human body parts near Jordag village in Jariagarh police station on November 24.
Bhengra was in a live-in relationship with the deceased, a 24-year-old woman also from Khunti district, in Tamil Nadu for the past couple of years. Sometime back, he returned to Jharkhand, got married to another woman without telling his partner anything and went back to the southern state without his wife to join her.
"The brutal incident occurred on November 8 when they reached Khunti as the accused who had married another woman did not wish to take her home. Instead, he took her to a forest near his house at Jordag village in Jariagarh police station and chopped the body into pieces. The man has been arrested," Khunti Superintendent of Police Aman Kumar told PTI.
Inspector Ashok Singh who investigated the case said the man worked in a butcher shop in Tamil Nadu and was expert in slicing chicken.
“He admitted chopping the body parts of the woman into 40 to 50 pieces before leaving those in the forest for wild animals to feast on. The police recovered several parts on November 24 after a dog in the area was seen with a hand," Singh told PTI.
Singh said that the woman, who was unaware of his marriage, pressured him to return to Khunti. After reaching Ranchi, they boarded a train on November 24 and headed to the man's village.
"Under a plan, the man took her to Khunti in an autorickshaw near his home and asked her to wait. He returned with sharp weapons and strangulated her with her dupatta after raping her. He then cut the body into 40 to 50 pieces and left for his home to live with his wife," Singh said.
The woman, however, had informed her mother that she had boarded a train and would be living with her partner, the police officer said.
Following the recovery of body parts, a bag was also found in the forest with the murdered woman's belongings including her Aadhaar card. The mother of the woman was called at the spot and she identified her daughter's belongings.
"The mother suspected the man behind the crime who after being nabbed by the police admitted to chopping the woman into pieces," the official added.
The incident has sent shockwaves among people in the region, with the Shraddha Walker murder case of 2022 still fresh in their memory.
Walker was killed by her live-in partner who chopped her body into pieces before dumping them in the jungle in South Delhi’s Mehrauli.
