Intro
Indian skipper’s prolific New Zealand series boosts rankings as teammates dominate charts
Dubai
India captain Suryakumar Yadav climbed five places to reach seventh position in the latest ICC men’s T20I batting rankings, released on Wednesday, following an impressive run in the ongoing five-match home series against New Zealand.
The former world No.1 batter produced scores of 32, 82 not out and 57 not out in the first three matches of the series, which India currently lead 3-0. Suryakumar’s consistency and match-winning ability at the middle order have helped him regain momentum just days ahead of the T20 World Cup.
India continue to dominate the upper echelons of the batting rankings, with Abhishek Sharma holding on to the top spot and Tilak Varma placed third, underlining the depth and form of the top-ranked T20I side. The rankings update comes barely 10 days before the World Cup, providing a major confidence boost for the hosts.
Ishan Kishan, who blasted a rapid 76 off 32 balls in the second T20I at Raipur, has re-entered the rankings at 64th position. Other Indian batters to make notable gains include Shivam Dube, who jumped nine places to 58th, and Rinku Singh, who surged 13 spots to 68th.
Among other teams, Afghanistan batters made significant progress after their 2-1 series win over the West Indies in Dubai. Ibrahim Zadran climbed two places to 13th, while Rahmanullah Gurbaz moved up three spots to 15th. Player-of-the-Series Darwish Rasooli leapt 29 places to 87th after scoring 156 runs.
South Africa captain Aiden Markram’s unbeaten 86 lifted him into the top 20, while West Indies’ Brandon King and New Zealand’s Glenn Phillips also recorded sharp rises.
In bowling rankings, Afghanistan spinner Mujeeb ur Rahman moved to ninth, while India’s Jasprit Bumrah and Ravi Bishnoi advanced to 13th and 19th respectively. Hardik Pandya registered gains across batting, bowling and all-rounder charts, highlighting his growing impact.
In ODIs, England batters Harry Brook and Joe Root climbed after their series win in Sri Lanka, while Adil Rashid and Dunith Wellalage made strides among bowlers.
