Delhi: Former Indian cricket team captain Rohit Sharma has created history on Wednesday (29 October). He has become the oldest cricketer to achieve the number 1 position in the ICC ODI batting rankings. At the age of 38 years and 182 days, the Mumbai-born opener jumped two places and reached the top spot for the first time in his illustrious career. He has removed the current Indian captain Shubhman Gill from this position.

Great performance in Australia series

Rohit’s return to the top has been based on his brilliant performance in the recently concluded ODI series against Australia. He scored 202 runs in three matches at an incredible average of 101. His unbeaten century in the series decider at the Sydney Cricket Ground not only helped India win the series but also cemented his position as one of the most reliable and aggressive openers in world cricket. Experienced Rohit was chosen Player of the Series.

Position of Indian batsmen in the ranking

With 781 rating points, Rohit is now ahead of Afghanistan’s Ibrahim Zadran, who is in second place with 764 points, while Gill has slipped to third place with 745 points. Virat Kohli, who scored unbeaten 74 runs in the third ODI after failure in the second ODI, is in sixth place with 725 points. Shreyas Iyer, even though he did not bat in the last match, has moved up one place to ninth position in the latest update.

Last week, Rohit had 745 rating points, but he got important points after two impressive innings of 73 runs off 97 balls in the second ODI at Adelaide Oval and 121 not out off 125 balls in the third ODI in Sydney. These two brilliant performances took him to 781 points.

Performance of Gill and other players

Gill, who has been ranked number 1 since the end of last year, did not perform well against Australia. He scored only 10, 9 and 24 runs in the three matches. At the same time, Kohli lost one place despite playing a fighting innings in the final match, while Iyer’s half-century in Adelaide helped him break into the top 10.

Rohit made a place in a special group

After leading India to the final in the 2023 ODI World Cup, Rohit has now joined an elite group of Indian cricketers like Sachin Tendulkar, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill to have achieved the top ODI batting ranking.

change in bowling rankings

In the ICC ODI bowlers’ rankings, Australia’s Josh Hazlewood has jumped two places to eighth, while India’s Kuldeep Yadav has slipped from sixth to seventh. Adam Zampa, who took four wickets in the second ODI, has moved up two places to 12th position. New Zealand white-ball captain Mitchell Santner has also made significant gains, moving up three places to fourth.