Dubai, Mar 3 (.) Alana King and Smriti Mandhana have climbed to the top of the ICC Women’s ODI Bowling and Batting Rankings, respectively, in the latest update released on Tuesday.
According to the International Cricket Council (ICC) website, King (775 rating points) ended Sophie Ecclestone’s near four-year reign at No.1 after an impressive week in which she claimed seven wickets at an average of 16.71.
Her standout spell of 4/33 in the third ODI helped Australia seal a 185-run victory and propelled her to a career-best rating and maiden No.1 ranking.
King is joined by four Australian bowlers in the top eight: Ashleigh Gardner (third), Annabel Sutherland (fifth), Megan Schutt (seventh), and Kim Garth (eighth).
Mandhana (790) moved past Laura Wolvaardt to reclaim the No.1 spot in the batting rankings after scores of 58 and 31 during the week. Wolvaardt will have a chance to regain the top position during South Africa’s upcoming ODI series against New Zealand.
Australia, who bounced back from losing the T20Is to win the ODI leg of the multi-format series, also saw gains for Beth Mooney, Gardner, and Alyssa Healy. Healy, who scored a century in her final ODI before announcing her retirement from the format, signs off ranked fourth (744), behind Mooney (749) and ahead of Gardner (724).
Gardner (516) continues to dominate the ODI All-Rounder Rankings, nearly 100 points clear of Hayley Matthews (418). Sutherland (408) climbed two spots in the all-rounder list, while youngster Georgia Voll jumped 23 places to 34th in the batting rankings after averaging 54 in the series.
Despite a 3-0 series loss, India captain Harmanpreet Kaur (652) re-entered the top 10, moving up four places to ninth following scores of 53, 54, and 25.
In South Africa’s ODI series against Pakistan, Sadia Iqbal climbed five places to 14th (583) in the bowling rankings, while Fatima Sana moved up five spots to 15th (180) in the all-rounder standings, overtaking Sune Luus, who also rose one place to 16th.
New Zealand’s home T20I series against Zimbabwe also resulted in changes. Melie Kerr surged seven spots to eighth in the T20I batting rankings, while Rosemary Mair leapt 10 places to 14th (668) in the bowling rankings and 11 places to joint 30th (120) in the all-rounder list.
Meanwhile, Kavisha Dilhari impressed in Sri Lanka’s lone T20I against West Indies in St George’s, moving up three places to 13th (207) in the all-rounder rankings after returning 1/16 and scoring an unbeaten 18 to guide her side to victory.
. VAN .