Dubai, Aug 14 (IANS) India captain Rohit Sharma has moved up to second spot after firing with the bat in the three-game ODI series against Sri Lanka while Pakistan white-ball captain Babar Azam remains on top in the ICC Men’s ODI rankings.
In a series where not many batters were able to find their footing, Rohit Sharma ended as the top scorer of the series with 157 runs to his name with an average of 52.33 and a strike-rate of 141.44 with two half-centuries.
Rohit’s move up the leader board can also be credited to vice-captain Shubman Gill’s struggles with the bat in Sri Lanka. The 24-year only managed to score at an average of 19 across the three game series whilst scoring 57 rubs. Behind Gill, Virat Kohli maintained his place at the fourth spot in the rankings despite raking in similar numbers with 58 runs in the series. Kohli shares the spot with Ireland’s Harry Tector who has a rating of 746.
The Indian trio trail Pakistan captain Babar Azam in the rankings despite not playing a single One Day International since the ODI World Cup campaign in November 2023 when the team failed to make it out of the Group Stage due to a superior rating of 824 compared to Rohit’s 765.
Sri Lanka defeated India in an ODI series for the first time 27-years and registered a 2-0 win over the Indians. For Sri Lanka, Avishka Fernando was the top scorer in the series with 137 runs to his name which saw him move up 20 spots to 68th place. The side’s highest ranked batter Pathum Nissanka scored 101 runs which further solidified his place in the top 10 as he moved past England’s Dawid Malan to eighth spot with a rating of 708.
India are not scheduled to play another ODI this year. The side’s next assignment comes against Bangladesh at home which will include two test matches and three T20I’s starting in September.
–IANS
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