Pakistan’s premier fast bowler, Shaheen Afridi, has ascended to become the nation’s top-ranked T20I bowler, according to the latest ICC rankings released on Wednesday.
Afridi moved up two places to reach 17th position among T20I bowlers, following his impressive performance in the ongoing home series against New Zealand. The 24-year-old leads the wicket-taking charts in the series after the first three matches, the ICC highlighted in its press release.
In the series opener, which was disrupted by rain, Afridi secured the only wicket. His remarkable figures of 3/13 in the second match facilitated Pakistan’s commanding seven-wicket victory over the Kiwis, propelling him past his teammate Haris Rauf, who is now ranked 22nd.
England’s Adil Rashid currently holds the number one spot in the T20I bowler rankings, while New Zealand’s Ish Sodhi climbed five places to 18th after taking three wickets in the ongoing series against Pakistan.
In the T20I batting rankings, India’s Suryakumar Yadav leads the chart. New Zealand batters Tim Seifert and Mark Chapman also rose in the rankings following their performances against Pakistan. Seifert moved up three places to 24th, and Chapman, after scoring an unbeaten 87 from 42 balls in the third game, which included four sixes, jumped 12 places to 33rd.
Pakistan’s captain Babar Azam slipped one position to fifth in the batting rankings, while Mohammad Rizwan maintained his third-place standing.
