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Abhishek Sharma creates history in ICC rankings after incredible Asia Cup run, sets new high in T20I cricket
Abhishek Sharma retained his ICC number one ranking, and reached 931 rating points in the standings. No player has reached that mark before.
After a stellar Asia Cup campaign in which he plundered 314 runs in seven matches and won player of the tournament honours, Abhishek Sharma has created history. The dazzling left-handed opener retained his spot at the top of the ICC men's T20I batters ranking, but his rating points increased to 931 — the highest any player has ever achieved in this format of the sport.
Abhishek has enjoyed a sensational start to his career in T20I cricket, one which seen him plunder 849 runs in just 15 months since his debut in 2024. Those have come at a rate of nearly 200, as he has become an example of what all international teams seek in their opening batter positions. He has also bulldozed his way to two centuries in that time, and his performance at the Asia Cap has put him firmly in place as one of the best modern batters in the format.
Abhishek’s updated total of 931 points sees him breeze past the previous top record for highest points in T20 cricket, which was 919 set by English batter Dawid Malan in 2020. He also overtakes former Indian number one batters Suryakumar Yadav and Virat Kohli, who topped out with 912 and 909 points respectively.
Abhishek remains ahead of Phil Salt in second place, while Tilak Varma’s heroics in the final mean he retains his third place position. Pathum Nissanka’s terrific tournament also sees him rise to fifth place in the batting rankings, having scored a sensational century against India in the tournament himself.
Hardik Pandya loses all-rounder top spot to Pakistan player
Varun Chakravarthy remains the top-ranked bowler in T20I cricket, but a surprise in the all-rounder rankings as Hardik Pandya was displaced from top position. He loses out to Saim Ayub: while the Pakistani player had a strong performance with the ball in this tournament, his batting was in horrendous form, as he racked up four ducks in seven innings, and only scored 37 runs through the tournament.
Following his sensational T20 run in domestic and international cricket, Abhishek is reportedly in the conversation to receive a call-up to India's ODI team, where he would be a deputy for Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill.
