ICC’s latest rankings have been announced. There are a couple of big changes in the rankings. In this article, we take a look at the latest ICC T20I rankings for batsmen in which Babar Azam has been displaced from the No.1 position.
The latest ICC T20I rankings see an important change
T20I rankings are usually volatile, especially for the batsmen. Hence, in the latest rankings, there is a massive change. Babar Azam, who was at the top until recently, has been displaced by English batsman Dawid Malan as the No.1 batsman in T20I cricket. Azam has dropped to the No.3 rank while Aiden Markram takes the No.2 spot. Mohammad Rizwan and KL Rahul are the other two batters in the Top 5.
It is interesting that Babar Azam has lost his spot to Malan after a string of recent failures while the English batsman himself has not been in the greatest of touch. Azam, after the stunning T20 World Cup in which he was the highest run-getter, has been involved in five T20I encounters so far. He has four single-digit scores in them, with the highest score being 19. This is mediocre for a player of his stature. Hence, Azam has lost his spot. On the other hand, Malan has not played T20I cricket since the semi-final against New Zealand in the T20 World Cup. In that tournament, too, the southpaw was not at his best.
An interesting few months to follow
It will be an interesting few months in International T20Is. With the World Cup coming up late next year, teams will already involve themselves in preparing for the event. The likes of KL Rahul, Aiden Markram and Mohammad Rizwan are showing good form. Hence, the spot at the top will not be secure for the likes of Malan and Azam.