LAHORE: According to the new rankings of teams and players released by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday, Pakistan hitters have taken over the top two places in One-day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals for the first time.
In one-day internationals, skipper Babar Azam and fellow opener Imam-ul-Haq are top and second, respectively, with India’s batting greats Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in third and fourth place.
Imam, 26, was the top scorer in the three-match One-Day International series against the West Indies in Multan, scoring 199 runs (three half-centuries) at an average of 66.33.
In the stated series, right-handed Babar totaled 181 with the help of a century and a half, average 181.
Pakistan speed standout Shaheen Shah Afridi is ranked fourth among ODI bowlers after capturing three wickets in two matches against the Caribbean side in Multan. Josh Hazlewood, an Australian fast bowler, has climbed to number two on the list, which is led by Trent Boult of New Zealand.
Babar and wicket-keeper/batsman Mohammad Rizwan are ranked top and second in the T20 International standings, with 818 and 794 points, respectively.
Babar, who is 27 years old, is ranked fourth in the Test batters’ rankings with 815 points, while Shaheen is fourth in the Test bowling rankings with 815 points (827 points).
All the while, Hazlewood is the world’s top-ranked T20 bowler, Indian opener Ishan Kishan enters the top 10, and veteran England batter Joe Root returns to the top of the ICC Men’s Test player rankings after smashing a second consecutive century in the ongoing ICC World Test Championship series against New Zealand.
