It has been a great first year in Test cricket for South African youngster Aiden Markram as the opening batsman has shot himself into the top 10 Test batsmen’s rankings with his performances against Australia in the recently concluded series at home.

The 23-year-old scored 480 runs in 4 Test matches against the Baggie Greens at an average of 60. He also scored two brilliant centuries to top off an impressive outing against Darren Lehmann’s men. His performances saw him join the elite panel of players to have scored 1000 or more runs in their first 10 Test matches.

As a result, he climbed six places to number 9 in the latest Test batsmen ranking. Meanwhile, Du Plessis also moved up five places to 17 while Temba Bavuma also moved up to 39.

For the bowlers, Vernon Philander moved up to number 3 with Kagiso Rabada retaining his number 1 spot. Morne Morkel, too, moved up to finish his career as the 6^th best Test bowler in the world.

The rankings reflect how good the Australia series was for South Africa. Aiden Markram, in particular, was fantastic throughout the series – except for the second Test – and deserves the accreditation that he is getting now.