Imam achieves career-best position in ICC Rankings

Rawalpindi Test between Pakistan and Australia was a batting feast, and Imam-ul-Haq’s century in both innings have moved him to career best 63rd position

Spokesman Report

ISLAMABAD: The Rawalpindi Test between Pakistan and Australia was a batting feast, and Imam-ul-Haq’s century in both innings have moved him to a career best 63rd position with 477 points in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s Test Player Rankings.

Hi teammate Azhar Ali struck 185 and moved up ten places to 12 whilst Abdullah Shafique added a second-innings century to gain 27 places to 67.

Australia’s Marnus Labuschagne missed out on a century, being dismissed for 90, but that was enough to gain a point up to 936 and 12th position on his own in the list of highest-ever batting ratings. Usman Khawaja also fell in the 90s but continued his renaissance, moving up six places to 24 with the bat, his highest position for three years.

In bowlers, Nauman Ali of Pakistan impressed with figures of 6-107 in Australia’s first innings and saw him gain 19 places to 51.

Meanwhile, Ravindra Jadeja’s performance at India’s recent Test win against Sri Lanka in Mohali has catapulted him to the no. 1 position in the Rankings.

His unbeaten 175 lifted him up to 17 places from 54th to 37th with the bat and he added nine wickets to move up to 17th with the ball. His all-round contribution was enough for him to regain the top all-rounder spot from Jason Holder, who had held it since February 2021. Jadeja’s only previous time on top was in August 2017, when he spent a week at number one.

In T20I cricket, whilst the top 12 batters are unchanged, at joint thirteenth position is Afghanistan’s Hazratullah Zazai, who’s unbeaten 59 in the second match against Bangladesh at Mirpur ensured a shared series win. For the hosts, Liton Das starred in the first match with 60, which helped him to gain 26 places to 49th over the course of the series. With the ball, Nasum Ahmed has made his first appearance in the top 10 bowlers, thanks to his ‘Player of the Match’ performance of 4-10 in the first match.