Dubai, February 18 – Indian opener Abhishek Sharma maintained his position at the top of the batting rankings despite some recent concerns about his form, while wicketkeeper-batsman Ishan Kishan entered the Top 10 in the latest ICC Rankings update.
Abhishek had a disappointing performance in the T20 World Cup, starting his campaign with a duck against the USA in India's first game. However, he was admitted to a hospital in New Delhi due to a stomach infection and was left out of the game against Namibia. He also scored a duck against Pakistan upon his return.
Meanwhile, Ishan, who scored his second consecutive half-century in the T20 World Cup, jumped 17 places to take eighth overall, earning the Player of the Match award with 77 runs from just 40 deliveries.
Sri Lankan batsman Pathum Nissanka gained three places to move to third on the list for T20I batters after his brilliant century against Australia in Kandy.
There were also significant gains in the batting rankings for the South African duo of Ryan Rickelton (up 22 spots to 11th) and Aiden Markram (up six places to 15th), as well as for USA's Saiteja Mukkamalla (up 16 places to 21st) and England youngster Jacob Bethell (up 22 slots to 32nd), all thanks to decent performances in the T20 World Cup.
The tight battle for the No.1 ranked T20I all-rounder continued, with Pakistan's Saim Ayub once again taking the top spot in the updated ICC Men's T20I Player Rankings.
Ayub and Zimbabwe captain Sikandar Raza have been in a tight battle recently. Ayub claimed the premier spot, overtaking Raza at the top after taking three wickets against India in Colombo during the T20 World Cup.
Raza dropped to second, while Nepal's Dipendra Singh Airee (up two places) and Afghanistan's Azmatullah Omarzai (up four spots) share fourth place on the same list following some good recent performances.
The T20I bowler rankings are also tight, with Afghanistan spinner Rashid Khan gaining one place to move to second overall and close in on India counterpart Varun Chakravarthy at the head of the proceedings.
Zimbabwe pacer Brad Evans jumps 10 spots to fifth following consecutive three-wicket hauls at the T20 World Cup, while there are also gains for the Indian pair of Axar Patel (up four places to 14th) and Jasprit Bumrah (up six spots to 15th), as well as for Ireland spinner Matthew Humphreys (up 23 rungs to 23rd).
