Head goes past SKY to become top-ranked T20I batter

Australia’s Travis Head has leapfrogged Suryakumar Yadav to become the top-ranked T20I batter, the International Cricket Council announced on June 26 (Wednesday). The right-hander from India has been removed from the top spot for the first time since December 2023.

Australia failed to qualify for the semi-finals of the 2024 T20 World Cup but Head had a pretty good tournament. The left-handed opener slammed 255 runs across seven innings at an average of 42.50 and a strike rate of 158.38. He ends the competition as the second-highest run-scorer.

Meanwhile, SKY hasn’t been doing too bad either. The right-hander has 149 runs across six innings at an average of 29.80 and a strike rate of 139.25. Head jumped four places into the top spot, with Suryakumar, Phil Salt, Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan all dropping down a place to make up the remainder of the top five.    

In the all-rounders’ category, Marcus Stoinis has dropped from No.1 to 4. Hardik Pandya takes the No.3 spot, with Mohammad Nabi taking the second place. Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga is back at No.1 spot. Roston Chase of West Indies is the big mover among the all-rounders, up 17 places to 12th.

England’s Adil Rashid remains top of the bowling rankings, but Rashid Khan is up to second after his T20 World Cup heroics, with Josh Hazlewood moving up three places into fourth, behind Hasaranga. Kuldeep Yadav is up 20 places into 11th, while his Indian teammate Jasprit Bumrah has jumped a remarkable 44 spots into 24th.

(With inputs from ICC media release)

If you’ve not downloaded the Cricket.com app yet, you’re missing out — big time. Play Fantasy on Cricket.com NOW! Download the App here.