India’s Rohit Sharma has overtaken Pakistan’s Babar Azam to claim the second spot in the latest ICC Men’s ODI Player Rankings. This shift comes after Babar’s underwhelming performance in Pakistan’s recent series loss against the West Indies, where he managed just 56 runs in three matches.
Babar Azam, who had held the second position in the ODI rankings, saw his rating drop to 751 points following his struggles in the series. His average of 18.66, after accumulating only 56 runs, led to his slip to third in the ICC ODI standings. In contrast, Rohit Sharma, the Indian ODI captain, moved up to second place, capitalizing on his consistent performances.
Pakistan’s recent series loss to the West Indies has caused a ripple effect in the ODI rankings, with several other players also experiencing a decline. ODI captain Mohammad Rizwan fell from 21st to 22nd with 602 points, while Fakhar Zaman, who missed the series due to injury, dropped four places to 27th. Imam-ul-Haq and Agha Salman also saw their rankings dip, falling to 37th and 41st, respectively.
Saim Ayub experienced the biggest fall among the Pakistani batters, dropping nine places to 46th. However, Abdullah Shafique saw a positive rise, climbing seven places to reach 90th with 428 points, a rare highlight in Pakistan’s otherwise disappointing rankings.
In the ICC ODI bowlers’ rankings, Pakistan’s left-arm pacer Shaheen Afridi dropped to 13th, following his modest performance in the West Indies series where he took just four wickets in three matches. Haris Rauf fell to 27th, while Naseem Shah dropped to 43rd. Among the bowlers, Sri Lanka’s Maheesh Theekshana remains the number one ranked ODI bowler, followed by India’s Kuldeep Yadav and South Africa’s Keshav Maharaj.
Despite the setbacks, Pakistan will be hoping for a stronger showing in upcoming fixtures to regain lost ground in the rankings.
