Rishabh Pant reaches career-high 7th in ICC Test rankings
Dubai, Jun 25 (PTI): India's swashbuckling wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant reached a career-high seventh in the latest ICC Test rankings for batters on Wednesday, following his twin centuries in the series-opener against England in Leeds.
India's new Test captain Shubman Gill jumped five rungs to 20th overall following his century in the first innings of the match that his team lost by five wickets despite setting England a stiff target of 371.
Pant, who became only the second wicketkeeper to hit two hundreds in the same match during the first Test of the five-match series, climbed one spot in the list.
Before the 27-year-old Pant joined him, Zimbabwe's Andy Flower remained the sole stumper with two centuries in the same Test match.
Pant struck 134 and 118 in the thrilling Leeds Test that England won by five wickets.
There was little change in the rankings for Test bowlers, with India's pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah maintaining his place at the top of charts following yet another five-wicket haul in the Headingley Test.
Meanwhile, Ben Duckett, who was adjudged Player of the Match for his scores of 62 and 149 in England's victory, jumped five places to eighth in the rankings.
Duckett's teammates Ollie Pope (up three spots to 19th) and Jamie Smith (up eighth places to 27th) also made significant gains.
England veteran Joe Root remained the No.1 ranked Test batter, with teammate Harry Brook his closest challenger.
England skipper Ben Stokes gained three places to move up to fifth in the list for Test all-rounders following solid contributions with both bat and ball across the same game.
The drawn first Test between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh saw a host of their players make some inroads in the latest batters' rankings. Mushfiqur Rahim led the way, following his innings of 163 in Galle.
Rahim gained 11 spots to move to 28th for Test batters, while teammate Najmul Hossain Shanto jumps a whopping 21 places to improve to 29th on the same list after he scored a pair of tons in the same match.
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US firm The Standard opens GCC in Bengaluru
Bengaluru (PTI): US-based firm The Standard, a leading provider of insurance, retirement, and investment products, on Tuesday opened a GCC at Embassy Tech Village in Bengaluru.
The facility, inaugurated by IT Minister Priyank Kharge, marks the next phase of The Standard’s growth in India, following the launch of its India operations in November 2025, the company said.
According to a statement, the centre will support the continued expansion of capabilities across AI engineering, cloud platform development, data and analytics, digital transformation, and insurance operations, aligned with the company’s global strategy.
The inauguration also marks the opening of The Standard India’s permanent Bengaluru office, with plans for long-term expansion in software engineering, total experience, AI, and enterprise platforms.
The company said it will continue strengthening its in-house technology expertise in line with its long-term transformation roadmap.
“Karnataka, and Bengaluru in particular, continues to be the global epicentre for Global Capability Centres. The addition of The Standard’s GCC is yet another testament to the strength of our ecosystem—anchored in world-class talent, progressive policies, and a strong culture of innovation,” the IT minister said.
“We are witnessing sustained momentum in GCC investments, with global enterprises increasingly choosing Karnataka to drive high-value functions across AI, engineering, and digital transformation. Our focus is on enabling the next generation of GCCs that are innovation-led, outcome-driven, and deeply integrated with global business strategy,” he added.
Since establishing its presence in India in November last year, The Standard has strengthened its local leadership team across finance, human resources, talent acquisition, information technology, administration, and communications, the company said.
Greg Chandler, Executive Vice President of Information Technology at The Standard, said its operations in India play an increasingly important role in the company’s technology transformation.
“The launch of The Standard India strengthens our ability to fuel ongoing growth, innovate, scale technology capabilities, accelerate digital transformation, and deliver new solutions to our customers faster,” he said.
“This centre represents a long-term investment in world-class talent and reflects our confidence in India as a strategic partner in shaping the future of our business,” Chandler added.
