Australia captain Ricky Ponting has achieved the fifth best all-time test batting rating following his exploits in the first Ashes test. The 31-year-old scored 196 and 60 not out in his team's 277-run rout of England in Brisbane, lifting him to 940 points in the International Cricket Council's rankings released on Tuesday.

Only his countryman Don Bradman and Englishmen Len Hutton, Jack Hobbs and Peter May have achieved higher ratings.

The Brisbane century was Ponting's seventh in his last eight tests, taking his career tally to 32, level with former team mate Steve Waugh and behind Indians Sachin Tendulkar (35) and Sunil Gavaskar (34), and West Indian Brian Lara (34).

Pakistan batsman Mohammad Yousuf, who scored a record eighth century in the calendar year against visiting West Indies on Monday, retained second spot in the rankings.

Australia paceman Glenn McGrath's match-haul of seven wickets in his comeback Test helped him overtake South African Makhaya Ntini and compatriot Shane Warne into second place in the bowlers' list behind Sri Lanka off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan.

South Africa's Jacques Kallis remained the top all-rounder. Australia retained their stranglehold at the top of the team test rankings.