Following Imran Tahir’s indifferent showing in the just-concluded three-match T20 series against England, Pakistan allrounder Imad Wasim has leapfrogged the South Africa leg-spinner to become the number one bowler in ICC’s latest T20 International rankings, which was updated a day after England beat South Africa 2-1.
Tahir managed to pick up just a solitary wicket in two outings and has dropped to third place in the bowlers’ ranking, allowing Wasim to reach the pinnacle of rankings for the very first time in his career. India fast-bowler Jasprit Bumrah also achieved a career-best rank of two. The next highest-ranked Indian bowler in the list is Ravichandran Ashwin at tenth position.
South Africa’s Chris Morris and England’s Liam Plunkett have gained big after their impressive outings in series. Morris, who bagged the Man of the Match award in the second T20 and has conceded just over 5 runs in the series, has vaulted 32 places to sit on 29th while Plunkett has jumped 26 places to 38th after taking 3 wickets in 2 matches.
In the batting department, India skipper Virat Kohli has retained his numero uno position and is followed by Australia’s Aaron Finch and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson who have also retained their position.
Meanwhile, AB de Villiers, who led South Africa in the just-concluded series, and England opener Jason Roy have jumped big after brilliant performances in the three-match series. De Villiers, who was the leading run-getter in the series with 146 runs, has stormed back into the top 20 by jumping 12 places to 20th position while Roy, who was the third highest run-getter in the series with 103 runs, attained a career-best 25th position after jumping 26 places.
In the team rankings, New Zealand are at the top of the pile while England has moved into outright second position. The Three Lions had entered the series level with Pakistan on 121 points, but has now moved ahead after gaining 2 points. India is fourth with 118 points, 7 points behind New Zealand.