The two Rugby Championship clashes between the Springboks and the All Blacks in New Zealand, could decide top spot on the World Rugby rankings.
The Springboks still hold the No 1 spot, but New Zealand are closing in fast, and it sets the scene for explosive confrontations in their two titanic clashes in Auckland and Wellington in September – with less than a point separating the two rugby giants.
South Africa top the standings on 92.78 points, but their rating remained unchanged during the July window. This is because the Boks played against lower-ranked Italy (10th) and Georgia (11th), which didn’t offer the opportunity to gain ranking points.
In contrast, the All Blacks used their heavyweight three-Test series against France to ramp up the pressure. A 3-0 sweep over the world’s fourth-ranked team saw New Zealand bank 1.70 points, lifting them to 92.06 – just 0.72 points behind the Boks.
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Elsewhere, England’s 2-0 series win in Argentina sees them leapfrog the Pumas into fifth place, with Australia now sixth. Scotland drop to eighth while Fiji and Italy round out the top 10.
World Rugby Rankings
1 South Africa (92.78)
2 New Zealand (92.06)
3 Ireland (90.69)
4 France (87.92)
5 England (85.75)
6 Australia (85.12)
7 Argentina (84.39)
8 Scotland (82.82)
9 Fiji (80.66)
10 Italy (78.98)
Photo: Ashley Vlotman/Gallo Images
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