Reports | India top three gain spots in ICC T20 rankings for batsmen
India’s top three – Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, and Virat Kohli – all gained spots in the ICC batsmen’s rankings for the T20 version of the game. While Rohit and Kohli climbed one spot each to eighth and 11th, Dhawan moved up three spots to 13th in the updates released on Wednesday.
Kohli’s unbeaten 72 at Mohali in the second T20I of the three-match series against South Africa saw him inch closer to the top ten batsmen in the shortest format of the game. Meanwhile, returning to form with scores of 40 and 36, Dhawan was the bigger gainer with a jump of three spots to sit on 13th. Although he did not have the best of outings in either T20Is of the drawn series, Rohit climbed to an eighth spot he now shares with England’s Alex Hales – both have 664 ranking points.
Among the bowlers, Washington Sundar maintains his status as the top-ranked Indian, jumping eight spots to be placed 50th. As a team, India held onto their 4th spot despite the nine-wicket loss against third-ranked South Africa at Bengaluru. England is ranked second, while India’s arch-rivals Pakistan continues their reign as the numero uno team in the shortest format.Â
The series in India also saw South Africa’s T20 skipper Quinton de Kock move up 19 places from 49th to his highest position in two years (30th), with scores of 52 and 79 not out. Spinner Tabraiz Shamsi broke through into the top 20 among bowlers, while Andile Phehlukwayo has achieved a career-best ranking of seventh.
The updated rankings also took into account the T20 tri-series in Bangladesh, featuring Afghanistan and Zimbabwe, as well as the tri-series between Ireland, Scotland, and the Netherlands.
Fifth-ranked Hazratullah Zazai’s 727 points are the highest by an Afghanistan batsman in history while 21st-ranked George Munsey became the first Scotland batsman to breach the 600 ranking points mark on the back of his unbeaten 127 off just 56 balls against the Netherlands. Meanwhile, Zimbabwe skipper Hamilton Masakadza left the international scene as the highest-ranked batsman from his country (22nd), while Afghan’s youngster Mujeeb Ur Rahman broke into the top 10 with seven wickets in the series.
