In-form Clarke vying for Test top spot

Virender Sehwag's number one Test batsman's tag is under threat with Australian vice captain Michael Clarke hoping to snatch the top slot with some stellar performances in the series against New Zealand.

Only 17 rating points separate Sehwag (863) and Clarke (846) who jumped four places to second place in the ICC Player Rankings for Test batsmen after stroking his 14th century in his side's 10-wicket win over New Zealand in Wellington.

Another good performance by the 28-year-old Australian in the second Test starting in Hamilton from Saturday will potentially give him the No 1 position which he first achieved during the Ashes series in England last year.

Two other Indians, Gautam Gambhir and Sachin Tendulkar lost one place each to drop down to sixth and seventh respectively. VVS Laxman stuck to his 14th spot while Rahil Dravid slipped one place to occupy 17th, among the batsmen in top 20.

Among bowlers, still headed by South African pacer Dale Steyn, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh remained at sixth and seventh respectively. The duo are the only two Indians in the top 20. India are still on top of ICC Test Championship table with 124 points ahead of South Africa (120) and Australia (118).

England's 2-0 win over Bangladesh has earned them one ratings point while Bangladesh has conceded two ratings points but the overall positions remain the same.