South Africa moved up one place to 4th in the latest World Rugby men’s Rankings updated on Sunday following the quarterfinals of the 2019 Rugby World Cup.
The World Rugby Men’s Rankings will be updated after every match during the Rugby Word Cup, where points exchanges are doubled to reflect the importance of the tournament.
South Africa, who beat hosts Japan 26-3, switched positions with Ireland, who lost 46-14 to defending champions New Zealand in the second quarterfinal.
New Zealand maintains top position with 92.47 points while England (89.74) leapfrogged Wales (89.37) into second position.
The top four ranked teams are also the semi-finalists in this year’s Rugby World Cup.
Three-time champions New Zealand are scheduled to play 2003 champions England at the International Stadium Yokohama on Saturday. Two-time champions South Africa will face Six Nations Grand Slam champions Wales at the same venue a day later.
Africa’s other top five teams maintained their respective positions in the latest world rankings: Namibia (23), Kenya (32), Zimbabwe (34) and Tunisia (40).
