Australia will head into the men’s Ashes series with their players filling the top three slots in the world Test batting rankings.

In the latest weekly update from the International Cricket Council, c retains top spot with team-mates Steve Smith and Travis Head moving up to second and third respectively.

Smith climbs from third after his century in Australia’s World Test Championship final win over India, while Head rises from sixth after his player-of-the-match 163 in the same game at The Oval.

It is the first time since 1984, when the West Indian trio of Gordon Greenidge, Clive Lloyd and Larry Gomes were the occupants, that the top three positions have been provided by the same team.

Joe Root is the highest England batter in sixth.

Australia spinner Nathan Lyon has moved up to sixth in the bowling rankings after taking five wickets in the match against India. His captain Pat Cummins remains third, with England’s James Anderson second.

The first Ashes Test begins at Edgbaston on Friday.

Steve Smith invited England to try and make ‘Bazball’ pay off in the Ashes after Australia bowlers took control of the World Test Championship final against India, declaring: “they haven’t come up against us yet”.

England have spent the last year establishing themselves as the most daring red-ball team around, scoring at a frantic rate against New Zealand, South Africa and Pakistan and notching 11 wins from 13 games under Ben Stokes’ captaincy.

One by one they have lined up to take aim at England’s ultra-attacking approach, but Stokes and company have yet to take their foot off the throttle.

Australia clearly fancy their chances of breaking the streak and Smith saw no reason to doubt his side’s attack after they put the squeeze on India on day two at the Oval.

Seamers Pat Cummins, Scott Boland, Mitchell Starc and Cameron Green each took a wicket, as did spinner Nathan Lyon, with India closing day two on 151 for five – 318 adrift.

Asked if England’s preferred style would be a success against that bowling pack, Smith said: “I think I said it initially when ‘Bazball’ started that I’m intrigued to see how it goes against our bowlers. I’ve said that all along.

“I think it’d be difficult on this kind of wicket – up and down and seaming around – it’s not easy to defend, let alone come out and swing.

“They’ve obviously done well against some other attacks, but they haven’t come up against us yet. So, we’ll see.

“It’s obviously been exciting to watch. I must say I’ve enjoyed watching the way they’ve played and the way that I guess they’ve turned things around in the last 12 months or so, but it’s yeah we’ll wait and see how it comes off against us.”

Smith played a significant role of his own in putting Australia firmly in charge in London, taking his tally of Test centuries to 31. He spent just over five-and-a-half hours compiling 121, sharing a stand of 285 with the more expansive Travis Head (163).

Smith has now scored seven hundreds in English conditions, amassing 774 runs in the 2019 Ashes at a staggering average of 110.57.

“It was nice to spend a lot of time out there against some good bowlers on a challenging wicket after getting sent in. I’ll take a lot of confidence out of that and hopefully can keep building and have a successful summer here,” he said.

“I think in terms of English wickets it’s probably as close to Australia as you get. I’ve enjoyed playing here and it was nice to score a few out here again.”

India were scrapping to stay afloat in the World Test Championship final after a top order collapse left Australia in the driving seat on day two of the World Test Championship final.

Australia were all out for 469 in their first innings, Steve Smith following in the footsteps of first day centurion Travis Head to post 121, and then snapped up key wickets to establish a dominant position.

Each of their seam quartet struck as India lurched to 71 for four in the 19th over, before spinner Nathan Lyon joined the party and ended a battling fifth-wicket stand.

Ajinkya Rahane and Ravindra Jadeja doubled the score before the latter nicked Lyon to slip for 48. By stumps India were 318 behind on 151 for five, with plenty of work to do retain a realistic chance of succeeding New Zealand as red-ball world champions.

Australia arrived in the morning already boasting a healthy position on 327 for three. At that stage, they were surely hoping to clear 500, but India landed a few handy blows of their own as they took the last seven wickets for 108.

With 10 overs before lunch to work their magic, the Australian seamers made short work of the India openers. Captain Pat Cummins made the initial opening, thumping his opposite number Rohit Sharma halfway up the front pad with one that shaped in towards middle and off.

Scott Boland then joined the fray, seaming one in sharply and rearranging Shubman Gill’s stumps as he paid the price for a poorly judged leave. Boland filled his boots against England Down Under in 2021/22, taking a remarkable six for seven on debut at the MCG, and he made a compelling case for holding his spot at Edgbaston next week with 11 high-quality overs with the Dukes ball.

India survived a potential gut punch when star batter Virat Kohli came close to departing for a duck, withdrawing the bat only to see an inside edge spray off the toe and zip past his stumps, but their struggles continued after the break.

Cheteshwar Pujara belied his years of experience in English climes by aping Gill’s error, shaping to leave all-rounder Cameron Green and paying with the off stump.

Kohli’s exit left India in strife but he was at least guilty only of receiving a brutish delivery from Mitchell Starc.

The left-armer was expensive, shipping 52 from nine overs, but showed off his ability to deliver big moments when he got one to explode off a length at Kohli and rap the thumb of his bottom hand as it sprayed to slip.

India’s position left a lot to be desired but, with Australians sensing blood, Rahane’s perseverance and Jadeja’s counter-attacking nature served them well.

They put on 71 together, parted only when Lyon offered a change of pace. He forced Jadeja into an unusually defence stroke and clipped the outside edge to break the stand.

Smith had earlier brought up his 31st Test century, his seventh in England and his third at the Oval. Resuming on 95, he dispatched his first two balls of the morning from Mohammed Siraj to the boundary to reach three figures with minimal fuss.

India made regular inroads to keep the game moving forwards, Head departing for a classy 163 as Siraj got him brushing to the keeper with a bumper aimed at the ribs and Smith ending a five-and-a-half hour stay with an uncharacteristically loose prod that canoned into his stumps.

Steve Smith fell 11 runs short of a century in what might be his final innings for Sussex as he was upstaged by teenager James Coles in the LV= Insurance County Championship clash against Glamorgan at Hove.

In his valedictory match for Sussex before linking up with Australia for the World Test Championship final and the Ashes, Smith was on course for a ton until he was rapped on the back pad by James Harris.

Umpire Martin Saggers raised his finger as Glamorgan celebrated, with Smith seeming aggrieved having been potentially outside the line – the option of reviewing is not available in the championship.

Having turned his overnight 68 not out into 89, Sussex were firmly in the ascendancy and 19-year-old Coles’ 138, his maiden first-class hundred, plus a belligerent 73 in 64 balls from Fynn Hudson-Prentice lifted the hosts to 481 all out and a considerable 358-run first-innings lead in the Division Two game.

Glamorgan, skittled for 123 on the opening day, fared better second time around as they went to stumps on 118 for one although they sit 240 behind overnight and face a battle just to make Sussex bat again.

In Division One, leaders Surrey were grateful for lower-order half-centuries from Sean Abbott and Gus Atkinson (55) as they seized the upper hand against Kent at the Kia Oval.

Surrey stumbled to 180 for six in response to the visitors’ 278 but free-flowing innings from Abbott (78 off 88 balls) and Atkinson (55 off 44 balls) lifted them to 362 all out.

Kent then lost three wickets in in the last three overs of the second day to fall from 78 for one to 80 for four at stumps – still trailing Surrey by four runs at stumps.

Northamptonshire’s batting woes continued as they were shot out for 56 at Hampshire, with Keith Barker taking four for 13 and two wickets each for Mohammad Abbas and Ian Holland.

After being asked to follow-on, Northamptonshire, who have been rolled for 72 and 63 this season, closed on 50 for two to trail by 261 after Hampshire were all out for 367 in the morning at the Ageas Bowl.

Middlesex are in strife against Somerset at Lord’s after being bowled out for 175, with Matt Henry taking five for 45 and Lewis Gregory and Jack Leach collecting a couple of wickets apiece.

After being asked to follow-on, Middlesex ended the day on 81 for one to sit 148 behind. Somerset earlier converted their 325 for six into 404.

Matthew Montgomery capitalised on Ben Duckett’s absence with an unbeaten 130 to underpin Nottinghamshire’s 326 for five against Essex at Trent Bridge.

The efforts of Montgomery, in the side because Duckett has been rested ahead of the international summer, plus knocks of 57 from Ben Slater and Joe Clarke helped Nottinghamshire establish a 28-run lead.

In Division Two, a day after 22 wickets fell at New Road, Leicestershire’s 180 all out – where Joe Leach took five for 41 – set Worcestershire 271 for victory. They closed on 26 for two.

Durham slow left-armer Ajaz Patel claimed five for 93 to reduce Gloucestershire to 255 for nine in response to their opponents’ 445 at Bristol.

England seamer Ollie Robinson is enjoying being in the same dressing room as Steve Smith and doubts the former Australia captain’s presence at Sussex will have a material impact on the Ashes.

Smith linking up with Sussex for three Division Two matches in the LV= Insurance County Championship gives him a chance to get to grips with English conditions ahead of Australia’s bid to retain the urn this summer.

The union between player and county has divided opinion but Smith did not play any championship matches before the 2019 Ashes and still amassed 774 runs at a titanic 110.54 average in a drawn 2-2 series.

Earlier this week, he confessed he was welcomed to the Sussex nets by having his stumps rearranged by Robinson, who sees the advantages in playing alongside Smith and Sussex and India’s Cheteshwar Pujara.

“It’s a good battle,” said Robinson. “It’s nice to bowl at him and Pujara, I think it ups my game when I am training as well, it’s great to have them batting at the other end.

“(Smith) is obviously a very good player and I think he will score runs regardless of whether he faces me or not.

“We get a look at each other, but I don’t think it makes a big difference in the grand scheme of things.

“To have the world’s best batsman and Pujara in the same changing room has been cool. It hasn’t felt weird, I know (Smith) from previous series and it’s nice to have him around.”

Smith was restricted to a watching brief on the opening day of his championship debut at New Road, where Robinson hogged the limelight with seven for 59 as Worcestershire were all out for 264.

Robinson was a constant menace, bowling with vigour and at good pace, and only when he was taken out of the firing line did Worcestershire’s batters find any kind of rhythm at the crease.

This was only Robinson’s second outing of the season after experiencing some soreness in his back shortly after his return from New Zealand at the end of England’s winter touring programme in February.

The issue was not a major concern for Robinson but with the eagerly-anticipated five-Test series against Australia starting next month, he elected to have a pain-killing injection in the area.

“It’s similar to the one I had last year,” said Robinson, who struggled with a back problem during the 2021-22 Ashes. “I didn’t have a spasm, just the joint was getting slightly irritated.

“Last summer I let it go on and on, it took until June to be playing again. This year I thought I’d get it done as soon as possible and nip it in the bud.

“I don’t know many bowlers that don’t get jabs every year. It’s one of those things. I wanted to get on top of it before the Ashes, it feels really good now.”

Robinson’s contribution put Sussex in the driving seat – they closed on 63 for one before bad light brought an early end to the day – and, at this stage, he plans to play in the south coast club’s matches against Leicestershire and Glamorgan before linking up with England.

“I’m trying to peak for the Ashes, trying to get as many overs as possible between now and then,” added Robinson. “Three Sussex games and then the Ireland Test.

“I’m about 80 per cent, I’d say, there was a little bit of rustiness there, didn’t quite get my lengths right early on. But the wicket is quite helpful so when I did get it in the right area, they nicked it.”

Steve Smith was kept waiting for his first County Championship innings but had an excellent vantage point as Sussex team-mate Ollie Robinson ripped through Worcestershire.

The pair will be on opposing sides in this summer’s Ashes but are sharing a dressing room for now after Sussex somewhat controversially snapped up the former Australia captain for three Division Two matches.

He has been restricted to a fielding brief so far at New Road, watching from the slips and maybe making some mental notes as Robinson took top billing with seven wickets for 59 runs in Worcestershire’s 264 all out.

Robinson was nursing soreness in his back towards the end of England’s winter and this was just his second match of the season, but the seamer was a cut above as he took the first four wickets to fall.

Worcestershire recovered from 44 for five, with Adam Hose’s 59 followed by belligerent half-centuries down the order from Matthew Waite and Joe Leach, who put on 103 in 14.4 overs when Robinson was out of the attack.

But Robinson found the top of Waite’s off-stump for 59 from 54 deliveries in his first over back and then combined with Smith to remove Waite for a run-a-ball 53 as Worcestershire folded before Sussex closed on 63 for one at the end of the opening day, shortened by 21 overs because of bad light.

The expectation might have been on Sussex to bat first upon winning the toss under gloriously sunny skies but Cheteshwar Pujara’s decision to field was vindicated by Robinson’s opening burst of 7-0-30-4.

Ed Pollock collected an all-run four from the first ball of the day but another injudicious drive later in the over caught the outside edge and flew to Tom Clark, who moved across Smith to take the catch.

Azhar Ali, the ex-Pakistan skipper and jewel in Worcestershire’s crown, was caught on the crease and adjudged lbw by one angling into him while Jack Haynes, who bagged a pair against Gloucestershire last week, made just a single here before being squared up and nicking low to Tom Alsop at first slip.

Robinson had his and Sussex’s fourth when he snaked through a gap between Jake Libby’s bat and pad to uproot middle stump while Worcestershire were five down inside 50 minutes when captain Brett D’Oliveira was surprised by the extra bounce from Fynn Hudson-Prentice and an edge squirted to third slip.

Hose and Gareth Roderick settled once Robinson was withdrawn from the firing line, the pair putting on 92 either side of lunch, showing the kind of resistance that eluded those higher up the order.

Sean Hunt got a deserved wicket when Roderick feathered through to Oli Carter for 39 and the end looked nigh when Hose’s stumps were rearranged by Henry Crocombe’s precise yorker.

But Waite gave an indication of what was to come when he twice freed his arms off Hunt for leg-side sixes – another followed off Crocombe – while Leach found the boundary rope with regularity in a counter-attacking union that led to Pujara returning to Robinson sooner than may have been anticipated.

Robinson needed just six balls to break the enterprising stand, locating the top of off-stump to dismiss Waite, before Smith had his first tangible moment of the match when Leach was drawn into a stroke off the rampant bowler.

Last man Ben Gibbon lasted just two balls as he was pinned lbw to become Robinson’s seventh victim, with Worcestershire losing their final three wickets inside 13 deliveries.

Sussex openers Ali Orr and Clark showed better judgement than their Worcestershire counterparts, putting on 37 in gloomy conditions.

Clark was punished for driving loosely off Josh Tongue to depart for 12 but Orr was there on 37 not out, with Alsop unbeaten on 11, when the players came off under darkening skies.