Shaheen Shah Afridi loses top spot in ICC ODI bowling rankings

Pakistan’s star pacer, Shaheen Shah Afridi, has been dethroned from the number one spot in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s ODI Bowling Rankings.

Afghanistan’s leg-spinner, Rashid Khan, has climbed to the top position, surpassing Afridi, who now sits at second place. The rankings were updated on Wednesday.

Rashid Khan’s rise to the top comes after his outstanding performance in recent matches, where he showcased remarkable skill and consistency. Despite Afridi’s impressive contributions to Pakistan’s cricketing successes, including his role in the historic ODI series win over Australia, he has now been edged out by the Afghan bowler.

South Africa’s Keshav Maharaj holds the third position in the latest rankings, maintaining his place among the top ODI bowlers.

Meanwhile, Haris Rauf, who played a pivotal role in Pakistan’s 2-1 series victory over Australia and was named Player of the Series, has seen a drop in the rankings. Rauf has slipped two positions to 15th in the ICC Men’s ODI Bowling Rankings.

In other rankings news, Saim Ayub, the emerging Pakistani opener, has made a meteoric rise in the ODI Batting Rankings. After scoring a match-winning century in Pakistan’s dominant 10-wicket victory over Zimbabwe, Ayub jumped 80 places, moving up to 90th in the rankings. The rankings for ODI batting are still led by Pakistan’s star batter, Babar Azam.

On the Test rankings front, India’s Jasprit Bumrah has reclaimed the top spot in the ICC Men’s Test Bowling Rankings after leading India to a resounding 295-run victory over Australia in the opening Test of their five-match series in Perth.

Bumrah’s match figures of 8/72 helped him overtake Josh Hazlewood of Australia and Kagiso Rabada of South Africa, securing his career-best 883 rating points, the highest ever by an Indian pacer in Test cricket.

Additionally, India’s Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja continue to dominate in the Test rankings, with Ashwin holding 904 rating points and Jadeja closely behind with 899.

In the batting rankings, India’s Yashasvi Jaiswal and Virat Kohli made significant gains following their stellar performances in the Test series against Australia. Jaiswal reached a career-best second position, surpassing England’s Harry Brook and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson, while Kohli jumped nine spots to 13th.