Pakistan’s fast bowler, Shaheen Shah Afridi, has reclaimed the No. 1 spot in the latest ICC ODI rankings, released on Wednesday.
Afridi’s remarkable performance in Pakistan’s 2-1 series win over Australia earlier this month earned him the top position. The left-arm pacer took eight wickets in three matches, averaging 12.62, which propelled him three spots up the rankings, overtaking South Africa’s Keshav Maharaj (who dropped two places to third). Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan remains in second place.
Afridi had previously held the No. 1 ranking midway through the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in India.
In addition, Haris Rauf made a significant rise, moving up 14 places to 13th after taking 10 wickets and being named Player of the Series against Australia. Naseem Shah also achieved a career-high, improving 14 spots to share 55th place.
Afridi’s ascent to the top means Pakistan now has the top-ranked player in both batting and bowling in ODIs. Former captain Babar Azam extended his lead at the top of the batter rankings after scoring 80 runs against Australia.
New captain Mohammad Rizwan also made strides, moving up two places to 23rd in the ODI batter rankings after contributing 74 runs against Australia.
Other notable movements include Bangladesh’s Najmul Hossain Shanto (up 11 places to 23rd) and Afghanistan’s Azmatullah Omarzai (up two spots to 31st) in the batter rankings, while West Indies’ Gudakesh Motie (up one place to 14th) and Mehidy Hasan Miraz (up nine spots to 23rd) improved in the bowler rankings.
Afghanistan’s Mohammad Nabi remains the top-ranked ODI all-rounder, though Mehidy (up four places to fourth) and Omarzai (up two places to ninth) made notable gains this week.
