E-Paper
Sign in
Varun Chakaravarthy becomes World No.1 in T20Is, joins Jasprit Bumrah and Ravi Bishnoi in elusive list
Varun Chakaravarthy becomes the third Indian bowler to become World No.1 in ICC T20I rankings.
Varun Chakaravarthy became World No.1 in T20I bowling rankings on Wednesday, days after spinning a web over Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025 Group A match at the Dubai International Stadium. The 34-year-old became the third Indian bowler to achieve this feat, after Jasprit Bumrah and Ravi Bishnoi. The mystery spinner has been on top of his game in the ongoing eight-team tournament, registering spells of 1/4 in 2 overs against the UAE and 1/24 in four overs against Pakistan.
Earlier this year, Chakaravarthy reached the second spot in the T20I rankings and has finally overtaken New Zealand's Jacob Duffy, who has been at the top since March.
India's Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav have also moved up the rankings. The former is now at the 12th spot while the latter is now at the 16th spot, rising seven spots from his 23rd slot.
Jasprit Bumrah, who recently played his first T20I after the World Cup last year, moved up four places to 40th spot. Speaking of the batting rankings, Abhishek Sharma consolidated his position at the top after playing brisk knocks of 30 and 31 against the UAE and Pakistan, respectively.
Also Read: Abhishek Sharma's father prepared his son for Shaheen Afridi almost 10 years ago
His two knocks have helped him add 55 rating points and reach a total tally of 884. England's Phil Salt and Jos Buttler are breathing down Abhishek's neck, as the duo are in second and third place, respectively.
Other big gainers
Sri Lanka's Pathum Nissanka of Sri Lanka (up one place to sixth), South Africa’s Dewald Brevis (up two places to 11th), Afghanistan’s Rahmanullah Gurbaz (up two places to 19th), the UAE’s Mohammad Waseem (up two places to 20th), South Africa’s Aiden Markram (up 10 places to 30th), and India’s Shubman Gill (up four places to 39th) and Pakistan’s Sahibzada Farhan (up 18 places to 55th), are some of the other big gainers in the rankings.
The second T20I between England and South Africa saw the former posting 304/2 in the allotted twenty overs. Salt’s 141 not out off 60 balls, which was the highest score and the fastest T20I century by an England batter, inched back towards his career-best No. 1 position while Buttler’s 83 off 30 helped him attain a career-high 794 rating points and make a first appearance inside the top three.
Salt’s unbeaten knock of 141 off 60 balls, which was the highest score and the fastest T20I century by an England batter, helped him inch closer to Abhishek, while Buttler’s 83 off 30 helped him attain a career-high 794 rating points and make a first appearance inside the top three.
