Wales finished the Six Nations outside the top two in the world rankings after the shock defeat to Italy.

Wayne Pivac’s side now occupy ninth place in the standings, falling below Argentina. The French Grand Slam saw them overtake the All Blacks to become the second best official team in the world behind South Africa.

Ireland finished the tournament fourth, England fifth and Scotland seventh. Italy remains 14th in the standings behind Japan and Georgia. There is now a huge gap of nearly four ranking points between fourth-placed Ireland and fifth-placed England.

Read more:Wayne Pivac said the loss to Italy was a ‘revocable offence’.

Wales’ year doesn’t get any easier from here, with the team set to travel to South Africa for a three-test series in July. While Pivac’s position appears to be secure for the time being following last season’s Six Nations title success, heavy defeats and a repeat of the abject performance in Cardiff on Saturday could see that picture change.

Despite their low ranking, Wales are one of the top seeds for next year’s World Cup after the ranking from the start of last year was used for the draw due to the Covid pandemic. Wales were fourth at the time, having risen to the top of the table under Warren Gatland in the summer of 2019.

The new World Rugby rankings