DUBAI: Pakistani players have made significant progress in the latest ICC Men’s T20I rankings following their performances in the ongoing tri-nation series.
For Pakistan, middle-order batter Hasan Nawaz climbed two spots to 31st with 580 rating points, while skipper Salman Ali Agha made an impressive leap of 18 places to reach 59th with 497 points.
Pakistan spinner Sufiyan Muqeem also climbed 11 places to 22nd with 594 points.
Opening batter Fakhar Zaman, despite struggling in the ongoing series, moved up two places to 77th with 433 points.
Meanwhile, senior batters Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, who are currently out of Pakistan’s T20I plans, slipped to 21st and 22nd respectively, while Saim Ayub also dropped two spots to 40th with 558 points.
Opener Sahibzada Farhan fell four places to 67th with 481 points.
Afghanistan’s wicketkeeper-batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz climbed one place to 18th, while Ibrahim Zadran surged 12 spots to 20th with 606 points.
However, veteran all-rounder Mohammad Nabi slid to 69th, Hazratullah Zazai to 82nd, and Najibullah Zadran to 87th.
From the UAE, captain Muhammad Waseem rose five places to 26th with 591 points after a string of strong performances, while Asif Khan, who struck a fiery 77 against Pakistan, jumped 13 spots to 88th. In contrast, Alishan Sharafu slipped seven places to 91st.
At the top of the batting charts, India’s Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma continue to hold the first and second positions, with England’s Phil Salt in third.
In the bowling rankings, Pakistan spinner Sufiyan Muqeem climbed 11 places to 22nd with 594 points, while left-arm pacer Shaheen Afridi gained eight spots to 26th.
Haris Rauf slipped four places to 28th, while Abbas Afridi dropped to 33rd.
Spinner Mohammad Nawaz improved significantly, moving up 15 places to 43rd with 521 points. Abrar Ahmed fell four spots to 66th, and injured vice-captain Shadab Khan dropped nine spots to 81st.
For Afghanistan, captain Rashid Khan retained his eighth position. Pacer Fazalhaq Farooqi held 16th, while Naveen-ul-Haq slipped to 24th.
Spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman climbed to 27th. Meanwhile, veteran Mohammad Nabi jumped 26 spots to 54th, and young spinner Noor Ahmad surged 49 places to 73rd with 446 points.
Globally, New Zealand pacer Matt Henry continues to lead the bowling rankings, followed by England’s Adil Rashid in second and West Indies spinner Akeal Hosein in third.
