Just when you thought the Australian cricket team's disastrous tour of South Africa couldn't get any worse, the Aussies' fourth Test defeat has now seen them fall behind the Kiwis in the ICC Test cricket rankings.
After a humiliating 492-run defeat to South Africa which saw the tourists bowled out for 119 after losing 6/12 early on day five of the final Test of the tour, things have gone from bad to worse for Australia.
While it's no secret the ball-tampering scandal had a dramatic impact on the team with Tim Paine admitting his side ''weren't quite there," the fourth Test capiluation has sent alarm bells ringing.
The loss has dropped them to fourth in the Test rankings behind India, South Africa and now our Trans-Tasman rivals.
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It was a contrasting day five between Australia and South Africa in Johannesburg and New Zealand and England in Christchurch.
While the Aussies were rolled in less than a session - losing their final seven wickets for just 31 runs - the Kiwis fought out a draw after staring down the barrel of defeat against England.
New Zealand began the final day 0/42 chasing 382 and despite falling to 6/162 with almost half the day's play remaining, the Black Caps showed some fighting spirit by finishing at 8/256 in a one-nil series victory.
The disastrous end to the South African Test series also saw the Aussies take a financial hit after only being awarded $100,000 for finishing fourth, half of what they would have earned if they finished third.
First-placed India will pocket a cool $1 million while the Proteas will earn $500,000 as runners-up.
Alarmingly, Australia now sit behind the Kiwis in both Test and ODI cricket but do sit ahead on the T20 rankings after their tri-series victory earlier this year.
HOW DO THE ICC TEST RANKINGS LOOK NOW?
| RANKING | TEAM | RATING |
| 1 | INDIA | 121 |
| 2 | SOUTH AFRICA | 117 |
| 3 | NEW ZEALAND | 102 |
| 4 | AUSTRALIA | 102 |
| 5 | ENGLAND | 97 |
WHERE DO THE AUSSIES SIT AMONGST THE ICC RANKINGS?
- Australia are currently fifth on the ICC ODI rankings with India leading the way ahead of South Africa, England and New Zealand.
- After an outstanding run of T20 form, the Aussies sit in a narrow second behind Pakistan.
- Steve Smith tops the world Test batting rankings ahead of Virat Kohli but that won't last by the time he serves his one-year suspension.
- Josh Hazlewood is the only Australian bowler in the top 10 ICC Test bowler rankings sitting fifth behind Kagiso Rabada.
So after an Ashes victory and a history-changing tour of South Africa in the 2017/18 Test season, what will the next chapter in Australian cricket hold?
