Dubai [UAE], October 15 : Afghanistan's Rashid Khan and Azmatullah Omarzai moved to the top of the ICC rankings after clinically sweeping the ODI series 3-0 against Bangladesh.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) issued the updated rankings on Wednesday, and Afghanistan's white-ball stars were the ones who hit the jackpot. One of the premier spinners in white-ball cricket, Rashid reclaimed the number one-ranked ODI bowler in the world while Omarzai returned to the summit of ODI all-rounders.
Ibrahim Zadran, who was adjudged Player of the Series, almost completed the trio of number ones in the ODI ranks. He leapfrogged eight points to settle for the second spot behind India captain Shubman Gill in the Batting rankings.
For the first time, Afghanistan managed to whitewash the Asian rival and boosted their credentials for the 2027 ODI World Cup, scheduled to be held in South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe. Rashid cast a spell with his spinning deliveries and scythed 11 scalps across three matches.
He soared five places and dethroned South Africa's seasoned ball tweaker, Keshav Maharaj, at the top of the ODI Bowling rankings. Meanwhile, Omarzai moved one spot to climb past Zimbabwe veteran Sikandar Raza on the list for ODI all-rounders following seven scalps of his own across the series.
Apart from his growing stature in the bowling rankings, Rashid also grew in the ranks in the all-rounders category. He jumped two spots to move to fourth as Afghanistan's players dominated all three ODI standings.
After his 213-run exploits at 71.00 against Bangladesh, Zadran is just 20 rating points behind Gill in the race for the number one spot in the ODI Batting rankings. Zadran's Afghanistan teammates Rahmanullah Gurbaz (up two places to 16th) and Mohammad Nabi (up six rungs to equal 50th) also made some ground following the latest update.
Coming to the Test format, India players surged after sweeping the home series 2-0 against the West Indies. Flamboyant opener Yashasvi Jaiswal rose to fifth behind England's Joe Root on the list for Test batters. Left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav climbed seven spots to move to 14th for Test bowlers after scalping 12 wickets in two fixtures.
Despite being on the losing side, the West Indies will be buoyed by the efforts of Shai Hope (up 34 places to equal 66th) and centurion John Campbell (up six rungs to 68th) as the pair climb the list for Test batters. Vice-captain Jomel Warrican (up two spots to 30th) makes some ground for Test bowlers.