World rankings: Italy hit 11-year high despite Six Nations heartbreak
Italy players react at the end of the Six Nations rugby union international between France and Italy at the Pierre Mauroy stadium in Villeneuve d'Ascq, northern France, Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024.
Italy have returned to the top 10 of the World Rugby rankings for the first time in 11 years after their Six Nations draw with France on Sunday.
The Azzurri were on the cusp of a first-ever win over Les Bleus in France but fell just short when Paolo Garbisi’s effort struck the upright.
Italy return to the top 10
However, the 13-all stalemate was enough to see Italy leapfrog Fiji and enter the top 10 in the rankings for the first time since June 2013.
The dramatic draw earned them one ranking point, taking them to a 76.58 overall rating and moving them within one place of their highest-ever position of eighth.
Had Garbisi slotted the winning kick, they would have moved into eighth place, moving ahead of Australia and Wales, but it was not to be.
Law discussion: Should Paolo Garbisi have been allowed to retake the final kick?
Despite being overwhelming favourites and having home-ground advantage, France did not surrender their fourth-place ranking due to the draw, but they did lose a whole rating point.
While Ireland (92.11) made it three bonus-point wins from three matches with a victory over Wales in Dublin, they did not receive any rating points for the triumph due to the 12.57 rating points difference with Warren Gatland’s side before the encounter.
They stay in second place behind South Africa (94.54), while Wales remain eighth after the defeat and were fortunate not to drop due to the missed penalty in Lille.
Scotland close in on England
Elsewhere, Scotland retained the Calcutta Cup after securing a 30-21 victory over England at Murrayfield on Saturday. However, the result was not enough to see the Scots trade places with England, who held onto fifth spot. Gregor Townsend’s charges required a win of 15 points or more for that to occur.
However, England’s 2.56 rating points advantage heading into the match has now been cut to just 0.64 points as Scotland edge closer to moving up the rankings to match their all-time high of fifth.
With the Rugby Europe Championship players enjoying a fallow week, there were no further changes in the top 20 of the rankings.
Latest World Rugby rankings (as of 26/02/2024)
1 (1) South Africa – 94.54
2 (2) Ireland – 92.11
3 (3) New Zealand – 89.80
4 (4) France – 86.39
5 (5) England – 84.93
6 (6) Scotland – 84.29
7 (7) Argentina – 80.68
8 (8) Wales – 79.54
9 (9) Australia – 77.48
10 (11) Italy – 76.58
11 (10) Fiji – 76.38
12 (12) Japan – 74.27
13 (13) Georgia – 72.68
14(14) Samoa – 72.23
15 (15) Portugal – 71.62
16 (16) Tonga – 71.57
17 (17) USA – 67.94
18 (18) Uruguay – 67.39
19 (19) Spain – 63.46
20 (20) Romania – 62.58
READ MORE: Antoine Dupont’s verdict on France’s Six Nations draw with Italy