Babar Azam Returns To Top Spot As ICC Announces Latest T20I Batsmen Rankings
Pakistan captain and opening batter, Babar Azam, has retained his top spot in the ICC Men’s Player Rankings for T20Is. Babar had dropped down to No. 3 after scores of 0 and 7 in the first couple of matches against West Indies.
He shot back to form with a 79 in the final T20I at Karachi to get back to where he belongs. The 27-year-old is now holding the top spot along with Dawid Malan. Both of them have 805 points, followed by Babar’s opening partner, Mohammad Rizwan with 798 points.
Babar’s form in 2021 has been top-notch, culminating in an excellent T20 World Cup campaign where he top-scored in the tournament. He was the only batter who managed to cross the 300-run mark and also had an excellent strike rate of over 60.
With Rizwan firing at the other end, the duo formed a deadly partnership at the top and have four 150-run partnerships in the calendar year. The top four players are separated by a mere 9 points and with a season filled with T20Is coming up, changes will be expected.
Indian opener, KL Rahul, is 5th on the list with 729 points, Aaron Finch remains in 6th place with 709 points followed by Kiwi opener, Devon Conway. The 30-year-old Conway didn’t have the best of tournaments in the T20 World Cup and was also injured ahead of New Zealand’s semifinal clash against England.