DUBAI – New Zealand’s Colin Munro and Ish Sodhi have started 2018 with a bang after vaulting to the top of the ICC T20I Player Rankings for batsmen and bowlers respectively, following stellar performances in the series against the Windies, which concluded at Mount Maunganui on Wednesday.
According to a press release issued by the ICC, Munro finished as the leading run-getter in the series with 223 runs at a strike-rate of just over 197, including a 53-ball 104 in the last match, while Sodhi grabbed three wickets, including two for 25 in the third T20I.
Munro, for his consistent form, has been rewarded with a jump of 11 places, which has put him in number-one position for the first time in his career. In the process, Munro has leapfrogged team-mates Kane Williamson, who has slipped two places to seventh, and Martin Guptill, who has conceded one place to drop out of the top-10 in 11th position.
Munro has collected 137 points in the series and now leads second-ranked Aaron Finch of Australia by nine points with India’s third-ranked Virat Kohi another eight points behind.
Sodhi, in contrast, has leaped from 10th to first, achieving a personal milestone of topping the bowlers’ rankings for the first time in his career. The wrist-spinner earned 70 points for his efforts, which has put him seven points ahead of second-ranked Imad Wasim of Pakistan. Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan is ranked third, just two points behind his Asian neighbour.
Munro is the third New Zealand batsman to surge to the top of the T20I batting table after Brendon McCullum and Guptill, while Sodhi is the third Black Caps bowler to rise to the top after Daniel Vettori and Shane Bond.
Munro and Sodhi are also the second New Zealand pair to top the T20I batting and bowling tables at the same time after McCullum and Vettori had simultaneously topped the batting and bowling tables in 2009 and 2010, respectively.
In the 50-over format, David Warner and Josh Hazlewood from Australia were the last team-mates to sit on top of the batting and bowling tables at the same time, while South Africa’s pair of AB de Villiers and Dale Steyn were the last to occupy the top batting and bowling slots at the same time in Tests.
A happy Munro said: “It’s a bit of a surprise but one that I think anybody would take. It’s been a bit of a goal of mine to get up the rankings and to get to the top is pretty special.
“Yeh great to get the treble. It’s pretty weird actually and it’s testament to the way we’ve prepared.
“Ish has been bowling wonderfully in T20 cricket and the team has been going from strength to strength and it’s testament to the way we’ve been preparing for series and I think we’re getting better and better every time.”
A delighted Sodhi commented: “I’m really grateful for the success I’ve had and I’m stoked to be ranked number-one. It hasn’t really sunk in just yet, but I’m sure it will as the days progress.
“I’ve been trying to find a really good balance between attacking and defending, and I think it’s getting better and better the more I play.
“I played club cricket with Colin when I was about 15-years-old and he handed me my first premier cricket cap. So, I’m stoked to see him doing what he is doing at the highest level.
“We’ve been a really good T20I side for quite some time now and I think it’s probably down to how we adapt to conditions and also our leadership – the boys have been really good at helping us young players.”
Other players to improve their rankings following the just-concluded series are Windies’ batsman Andre Fletcher, and New Zealand trio of Mitchell Santner, Trent Boult and Tim Southee.
Fletcher, who with a series aggregate of 73 runs was the second most successful batsman, has gained 13 places to break into the top-50 in 50th position, Santner has return to the top-10 in sixth place after rising five positions, Boult has claimed 13th position after earning four places and Southee has shot up 11 places to 70th after finishing as the leading wicket-taker in the series with six wickets.
There is no change in the top three of the all-rounders’ list, which is headed by Shakib Al Hasan of Bangladesh. Glenn Maxwell of Australia and Mohammad Nabi of Afghanistan are ranked second and third, respectively.
ICC T20I Player Rankings (as on 4 January 2018, after New Zealand v Windies series):
BATSMEN (top 10)
Rank (+/-) Player Team Points Avge S/Rate HS Rating
1 (+11) Colin Munro NZ 793! 32.65 161 793 v Win at Bay Oval 2018
2 (-1) Aaron Finch Aus 784 37.73 148 892 v Ban at Mirpur 2014
3 ( – ) Virat Kohli Ind 776 52.86 138 897 v Eng at Edgbaston 2014
4 (-2) Evin Lewis Win 734* 36.00 155 780 v Eng at Durham 2017
5 (-1) Lokesh Rahul Ind 726* 50.88 148 757 v SL at Indore 2017
6 ( – ) Glenn Maxwell Aus 700 28.93 165 763 v SL at Colombo (RPS) 2016
7 (-2) Kane Williamson NZ 695 34.54 123 760 v Ban at Napier 2017
8 (-1) Alex Hales Eng 690 32.92 135 866 v Ind at Edgbaston 2014
9= (-1) Hashim Amla SA 683! 34.51 133 683 v Ban at Potchefstroom 2017
(-1) Joe Root Eng 683 39.10 129 750 v Win at Kolkata 2016
SELECTED RANKINGS
Rank (+/-) Player Team Points Avge S/Rate HS Rating
11 (-1) Martin Guptill NZ 679 33.20 131 793 v SA at Hamilton 2012
27 (-4) Chris Gayle Win 541 33.80 145 831 v Aus at Colombo (RPS) 2012
50 (+13) Andre Fletcher Win 432 22.37 109 492 v Afg at Nagpur 2016
BOWLERS (top 10)
Rank (+/-) Player Team Points Avge Eco. Highest Rating
1 (+9) Ish Sodhi NZ 726*! 14.89 6.89 726 v Win at Bay Oval 2018
2 (-1) Imad Wasim Pak 719 20.25 6.01 780 v Win at Trinidad 2017
3 (-1) Rashid Khan Afg 717! 14.35 5.91 717 v Win at St Kitts 2017
4 (-1) Jasprit Bumrah Ind 702 19.17 6.71 764 v Eng at Bengaluru 2017
5 (+6) Mitchell Santner NZ 695* 20.04 6.76 697 v Win at Nelson 2017
6= (-2) Samuel Badree Win 691 18.72 5.98 855 v Pak at Mirpur 2014
(-1) Imran Tahir SA 691 15.85 6.80 795 v NZ at Auckland 2017
8 (-1) M. Rahman Ban 667* 14.92 6.16 695 v SL at Colombo (RPS) 2017
9= (-1) Shakib Al Hasan Ban 661 20.65 6.79 672 v Pak at Mirpur 2014
(-1) James Faulkner Aus 661 19.00 7.96 688 v SL at Adelaide 2017
SELECTED RANKINGS
Rank (+/-) Player Team Points Avge Eco. Highest Rating
13 (+4) Trent Boult NZ 616*! 19.10 8.10 616 v Win at Bay Oval 2018
29 ( – ) Carlos Brathwaite Win 530 27.86 8.75 552 v NZ at Nelson 2017
70 (+11) Tim Southee NZ 420 24.87 8.74 628 v Pak at Pallekele 2012
ALL-ROUNDERS (top three)
Rank (+/-) Player Team Points Highest Rating
1 ( – ) Shakib Al Hasan Ban 354 408 v Pak at Mirpur 2015
2 ( – ) Glenn Maxwell Aus 330 388 v SL at Colombo (RPS) 2016
3 ( – ) Mohammad Nabi Afg 275 286 v Ire at Greater Noida 2017