India’s batting star Smriti Mandhana has finally returned to the top of the ICC Women’s ODI Batting Rankings, taking back the No.1 spot for the first time since 2019. The ICC’s latest rankings update on Tuesday sealed her return to the top, putting an end to six-year long wait.
🚨 SMRITI MANDHANA BECOMES THE NUMBER 1 RANKED BATTER IN WOMEN'S ODI RANKING 🚨 pic.twitter.com/989yhtyuQ0
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Mandhana’s return to the top comes at the expense of South African captain Laura Wolvaardt, who slipped down the rankings, losing 19 rating points after modest displays in recent games against the West Indies. Though Mandhana has been a perennial figure among the top 10 rankings over the years, it is her return to the pinnacle after such a long time.
The Indian opener has been in exquisite form recently, with her best performance being the final of the tri-series against Sri Lanka and South Africa in Colombo. Her scintillating century there – the 11th ODI century of her career was the turning point in giving her rating an added boost and also moving ahead of Wolvaardt, who scored 27 and 28 in her last two matches.
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As a result, Wolvaardt now sits in joint second place alongside England’s Nat Sciver-Brunt. Other notable movements on the batting charts include South Africa’s Tazmin Brits, who jumped five spots to 27th, and Sune Luus, who climbed seven places to 42nd.
A few West Indies players also made notable improvements. Shemaine Campbelle improved by seven ranks to 62nd, and Qiana Joseph improved by 12 ranks to occupy the 67th rank. In the bowling department, West Indies spinner Afy Fletcher was the week’s biggest mover. She improved by four positions to 19th in the ODI bowler rankings thanks to her four-wicket effort against South Africa at Cave Hill.
England’s Sophie Ecclestone remains at the top of the bowling rankings, but South Africa’s Nonkululeko Mlaba and Chloe Tryon also improved. Mlaba moved up six positions to 23rd, and Tryon to 45th. Mlaba’s impressive all-round performance also saw her move up by 11 places to 35th, as she took a four-wicket haul in the second match in the series.
With rankings turning upside down in every department, Mandhana’s return to the number one spot is a reflection of her consistency and quality just the shot in the arm that India needed ahead of future international engagements.
