Virat Kohli on losing No.1 spot to Pakistan : India does not play for rankings

"Had Pakistan not won, had we drawn the last game, the rankings would have looked different again. It is a very short-term incentive because we understand that the points` table is very close.

"But as a team we think we can assess ourselves at the end of this season, not one Test at a time," Kohli said, reported IANS.

Pakistan, who are occupying the first place for the first time since the rankings came into existence in 2003, showed tremendous fight to draw level against England in the final Test match. They now have 111 points from 25 matches, while India are just one point behind them having played the same number of games. Kohli, however, has insisted that the team does not play for rankings.

"The other teams have played more games than us and we need to play as many games to be able to compare after the whole season is done. Rankings keep going up and down, and you don`t play for rankings. You want to be the best side in the world and that has always been our aim," Kohli added.