ENGLAND will go into the home series against West Indies holding second place in the International Cricket Council Test rankings.
Michael Vaughan's side have climbed above South Africa on the back of the recent 3-0 whitewash over New Zealand.
But they need to beat West Indies by a two-Test margin to maintain their current position.
If the series ends in a draw or England are beaten, they could slide back as far as fifth.
Second place is England's highest position since the rankings were introduced in March 2001.
They have 107 points, 22 fewer than leaders Australia, with South Africa (106), Pakistan (105) and India (104) hot on their heels.
"We've improved our game over the last year. We changed our approach to it in terms of our work ethic and our mental preparation.
"Our results speak for themselves. We've really improved as a team and we're putting in some great performances at the moment," said England opening batsman Marcus Trescothick.
If they succeeded in whitewashing West Indies 4-0, their total would improve to 109, but that would not be enough to prevent India seizing second place later this year if they succeed in defeating Australia by even a single Test margin on home soil. (BBC Sport).