South Africa bowlers Rabada, Tahir advance in ICC ODI rankings

Dubai: South Africa bowlers Kagiso Rabada and Imran Tahir have advanced within the top-10 of the ICC ODI Player rankings after their 3-0 home series win over Zimbabwe.The International Cricket Council on Monday released the latest rankings of the ODI teams and players.

Fast bowler Rabada, who is also ranked second in Tests, has moved up three spots to take sixth position after grabbing five wickets in two matches, while formerly top-ranked leg-spinner Tahir's player of the series effort of 10 wickets, which included a hat-trick in the second ODI, has seen him progress three places to seventh position.

South Africa fast bowlers Andile Phehlukwayo and Lungi Ngidi have also made significant gains in a series dominated by their team, who won the three matches by margins of by five wickets, 140 runs and four wickets.

Phehlukwayo has moved up nine slots to 35th position with five wickets in the series and Ngidi has gained 19 places to reach a career-best 60th position with four wickets in two matches. Aiden Markram (up 14 places to a career-best 115th) and Heinrich Klaasen (up 47 places to a career-high 118th) have moved up in the list for batsmen.

For Zimbabwe, Hamilton Masakadza (up three places to 64th) and Sean Williams (up eight places to 78th) are the main gainers among batsmen while Tendai Chetara (up six places to 45th) has progressed in the list for bowlers.

 South Africa's facile win did not impact the ICC ODI team rankings as both teams remained on their pre-series points tally ? the home side in fourth position with 110 points and Zimbabwe in 11th position with 53 points.

Meanwhile, the top sides will continue to prepare for next year's ICC Cricket World Cup in England and Wales with five sides to feature in 13 ODI matches this month. To add further context to these matches, the number-one ranking will potentially be up for the taking depending on how Sri Lanka and England series pans out.

 In the England versus Sri Lanka series, which starts in Dambulla on 10 October, England will have to win the series to retain their number-one ranking. Their failure to win the series, will give India a sniff at the top spot when they will take on the West Indies in the five-match ODI series from 21 October.

However, if both England and India win all their matches in the upcoming series against Sri Lanka and the West Indies, then they will gain a point each to finish on 128 and 123 points respectively, thus retaining a difference of five points.

Bangladesh will also have an opportunity to add another point to their tally when they will feature in a three-ODI series against Zimbabwe from 20 October. The only way Bangladesh can drop behind Sri Lanka in eighth position is if Zimbabwe and England win 3-0 and 5-0, respectively.

Jasprit Bumrah is on the top of the ODI bowling ranking list, while Virat Kohli is no one ODI batsman.(UNI)