ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will be looking to win the Test series against New Zealand beginning Thursday at the Hagley Oval in a bid to close the gap with number-one ranked India, which is on 115 points.

Currently hosts New Zealand is on 91 points while Pakistan has 109 points before going into the test series. If Pakistan wins 2-0 against New Zealand then Pakistan will be at 112 points while will come at New Zealand 89 points.

If Pakistan wins 1-0 Pakistan will be at 110 points and New Zealand 90 points, said a press release issued
here.  Meanwhile, if New Zealand wins 1-0, Pakistan will be at 104 points and New Zealand 95 points. But if New Zealand wins 2-0, Pakistan will be at 102 points and New Zealand 96 points. In case of a 1-1 or 0-0 draw, Pakistan will be at 107 points and New Zealand 93 points.

In the individual rankings, Pakistan has four batsmen in the top 20, Younus Khan (4th), captain Misbah-ul-Haq (11th), Azhar Ali (13th) and Asad Shafiq (18th). For New Zealand, Captain Kane Williamson is ranked third and the next on the list is Ross Taylor in 21st position.

Conversely, New Zealand has a better count in the top 20 for bowlers as pace bowlers Neil Wagner (11th), Trent Boult (12th) and Tim Southee (17th) figure in it. Leg-spinner Yasir Shah is the only Pakistan bowler in the top 20 in fifth place, with pace bowler Wahab Riaz the next on the list in 25th position.

The MRF Tyres ICC Test Rankings (as of 16 November 2016, before the start of New Zealand-Pakistan series), India (1st, 115 points), Pakistan (2nd, 109 points), Australia (3rd, 108 points), England (4th, 105 points), South Africa (5th, 96 points), Sri Lanka (6th, 96 points), New Zealand (7th, 91 points), West Indies (8th, 69 points), Bangladesh (9th, 65 points) and Zimbabwe (10th, 5 points). -APP