Pakistan's premier fast bowler Shaheen Afridi has reclaimed the No.1 position in the ICC Men's ODI Bowler Rankings, a spot he initially held during last year's Cricket World Cup in India.
Afridi’s recent performance in Pakistan’s victorious series against Australia, where he claimed eight wickets across three games at an impressive average of 12.62, helped propel him to the top spot once more.
Afridi’s rise comes as part of a reshuffling in the rankings, with South Africa’s spinner Keshav Maharaj slipping to third and Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan maintaining his position at second.
Afridi’s dominance on the field, combined with Pakistan captain Babar Azam’s leading spot in the ODI batting rankings, makes Pakistan the only team with the No.1-ranked player in both ODI batting and bowling.
Babar, who scored 80 runs against Australia with only one dismissal, continues to hold the top batter rankings. Afridi wasn’t the only Pakistani bowler making strides. Haris Rauf surged up the ranks to reach a career-best 13th spot, following his Player of the Series performance against Australia with 10 wickets.
Naseem Shah also achieved a new career-high, advancing 14 spots to 55th overall. Additionally, Pakistan’s new ODI captain, Mohammad Rizwan, climbed to 23rd on the batting charts after a series against Australia.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh captain Najmul Hossain Shanto rose 11 places to share the 23rd spot among ODI batters, while Afghanistan’s Azmatullah Omarzai improved his position to 31st.
On the ODI bowling front, West Indies’ Gudakesh Motie and Bangladesh’s Mehidy Hasan Miraz saw gains, with Mehidy rising nine spots to 23rd.
In T20I rankings, England’s Phil Salt and Jos Buttler moved up to second and sixth respectively, among batters after strong showings against the West Indies. South Africa’s Reeza Hendricks and Tristan Stubbs made notable gains in the T20I batting rankings amid their current series with India, with Stubbs leaping up 12 spots to 26th.
Bowling rankings in T20Is also saw movement, with Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga advancing to second place behind England’s Adil Rashid. West Indies’ Akeal Hosein and India’s Ravi Bishnoi rose to third and seventh, respectively.
New Zealand’s Mitchell Santner and Lockie Ferguson, England’s Jofra Archer, and Sri Lanka’s Matheesha Pathirana all made strides, especially Pathirana, who jumped an impressive 22 spots to 31st.
On the all-rounder's chart, England’s Liam Livingstone maintained his T20I top spot, with Hasaranga moving to fifth and West Indies’ Romario Shepherd rising to eighth.
India off to winning start at Asian U-15 & U-17 Boxing C'ships in Jordan
India began its campaign at the Asian U-15 & U-17 Boxing Championships with two commanding wins on opening day as Hardik Dahiya (43kg) and Rudraksh Singh (46kg) started off with commanding wins in the preliminary round.
Sr Men’s Nationals: J & K, Chattisgarh in Division C; Chandigarh, Uttarakhand in Division B secure victories on day 4
Hockey Jammu & Kashmir, Chhattisgarh Hockey and Hockey Association of Bihar enjoyed victories in Division C while Hockey Chandigarh and Hockey Uttarakhand won in Division B on the fourth day of the 15th Hockey India Senior Men National Championship 2025 in Jhansi.
Sri Lanka’s 1996 World Cup-winning side gave birth to T20 cricket, says PM Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated that he believes Sri Lanka’s 1996 World Cup-winning side with their aggressive and unique style of batting gave birth to T20 cricket.
IPL 2025: There is a trust factor of relying on each other, says Kohli on bond with Rohit
Talismanic batter Virat Kohli spoke about his bond with his long-time teammate and India skipper Rohit Sharma, saying that there’s always been a trust factor between them as they have relied on each other to do the job of winning matches for the team.
Rohit-Kohli to retain A+ BCCI contracts, Iyer to return but Kishan may remain out: Sources
Indian batting stalwarts Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are all set to retain their A+ grade contract, which is worth Rs 7 crore in the BCCI's annual player contracts.
Champions Trophy: Spinners, Rohit and Rahul carry unbeaten India to third title win
India's spinners called the shots majorly to pick five wickets collectively on a sluggish pitch, while captain Rohit Sharma top-scored with 76 and KL Rahul stayed calm to hit an unbeaten 34 to give the Men in Blue their third Champions Trophy triumph with a four-wicket win over New Zealand here on Sunday.
Champions Trophy: Kane Williamson to not field in India's chase after picking quad strain
New Zealand’s premier batter Kane Williamson will not be fielding in India's chase of 252 in the ongoing ICC 2025 Champions Trophy final after suffering a quad strain while batting in the first innings at Dubai International Stadium on Sunday.
Champions Trophy: Spinners pick five wickets as India restrict New Zealand to 251/7
India’s spinners called the shots yet again on a slow pitch with just two degrees of turn as they restricted New Zealand to 251/7 in their 50 overs in the 2025 Champions Trophy final at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday.