Calcutta: Sri Lanka’s wicketkeeper-batsman Kumar Sangakkara has the opportunity to climb another place in LG ICC rankings for Test batsmen over the next couple of weeks as he prepares for a three-match home series against Bangladesh.

Sangakkara has been steadily improving in recent seasons and is currently occupying fourth place in the rankings, just five points behind Kevin Pietersen in third spot.

According to a media release, the left-hander’s current rating points tally of 857 is a career best and makes him the highest rated Sri Lanka player of all time and 47th in the rankings for all batsmen who have ever played Test cricket.

With no Bangladesh batsmen or bowlers currently in the top-20, this three-match series will be a good opportunity for some of them to make their marks.

Habibul Bashar is currently in joint 35th position with former India captain Sourav Ganguly while there is also a good chance for the likes of Rajin Saleh, Shahriar Nafees and captain Mohammed Ashraful to move up the log.

Meanwhile, No. 1-ranked Sri Lanka’s Muttiah Muralidharan is the only bowler who currently has in excess of 900 rating points.

His current tally of 913 is just two behind his career best of 915 that he achieved during a series against Pakistan in 2002.

While Muralidharan is way out in front of the current rankings, he can also make his mark on history if he continues to dominate batsmen the way he does.

He sits fourth in the all-time bowling rankings with his sights set firmly on the three names above him, Imran Khan of Pakistan (922 points), George Lohmann (931) and Sydney Barnes (932).

Muralidharan’s teammate Chaminda Vaas will be seeking a return to the top-ten among the Test bowlers with another strong series.

He is currently in 13th position with Corey Collymore of the West Indies and England’s Andrew Flintoff not far ahead.

Mohammed Rafique and Mashrafe Mortaza of Bangladesh have good opportunities to improve their current positions.