From memory it just seemed that the Windies were closer to us and South Africa than what those rankings suggest.Would have been closer, but I think West Indies would still be no.1 in the rankings.
For comparison, look the the ICC Test rankings from 1997.
International Cricket Council - Match Zone - Test Ranking
The International Cricket Council official website provides information on all major ICC cricket events, the Reliance ICC Rankings and live cricket scores from all levels of the game.web.archive.org
OZ were no.1 and SA were a close no.2 but ofcourse Australia still beat South Africa both home and away that year.