Mohammad Rizwan has become the No 1 ranked T20I batter in the world, displacing Babar Azam at the top of the charts, according to the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s Player Rankings for T20Is released on Wednesday.
Rizwan has been in stunning form in the Asia Cup, leading the chart with 192 runs in three matches. Rizwan was Pakistan’s mainstay with the bat in their matches against Hong Kong and India, scoring 78* and 71 respectively in their back-to-back victo-ries. His performances have seen him gain the top spot, overtaking Babar who has endured a lean run in the tournament so far.
Rizwan becomes only the third Pakistani batter to top the T20I rankings chart after Babar and Misbah-ul-Haq. Babar has been at the top of the T20I batting charts for 1155 days in his career (as of September 7).
In other big movements in the batting chart, Pathum Nissanka has gained one spot to move up to No 8, after his brilliant run in the Asia Cup. Nissanka has notched up scores of 20, 35 and 52 in his last three matches, with his latest performance helping Sri Lanka beat India in a Super Four encounter.
Afghan batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz is one of the biggest movers, gaining 14 spots to No 15, driven by his 84 against Sri Lanka in the Super Four clash. Indian skipper Rohit Sharma also moves up four spots to No 13 after his 72 against Sri Lanka. In the bowling chart, Afghan and Sri Lankan spinners have been the biggest gainers after their terrific performances. Mujeeb Ur Rahman’s (Afghanistan) 2/30 has helped him gain three spots, to move to joint No 6, along with Akeal Hosein (Sri Lanka).
Maheesh Theekshana of Sri Lanka has been at his economical best during the Asia Cup, registering figures of 1/23, 1/29 and 1/29 in the last three games and has been richly rewarded.—APP
