Dubai: India’s veteran opener Rohit Sharma has reached a major career milestone, climbing to the No. 1 spot in the ICC Men’s ODI Batting Rankings for the first time. At 38, he also becomes the oldest Indian batter to ever claim the top position.
Rohit rose two places to take the lead following his unbeaten century in the third and final ODI against Australia in Sydney, where India cruised to a nine-wicket victory. The Indian captain was in sublime touch, smashing 13 fours and three sixes in his 33rd ODI hundred, while stitching together a dominant partnership with *Virat Kohli (74)**.
His stellar knock helped him leapfrog Afghanistan’s Ibrahim Zadran and teammate Shubman Gill, who previously held the top two spots. Rohit, a consistent presence in the top 10 for most of the past decade, now finally sits atop the ODI batting rankings.
Interestingly, Ibrahim Zadran briefly made history as Afghanistan’s first-ever No. 1 ODI batter between the second and third ODIs of the India–Australia series, before Rohit’s surge pushed him down the list.
It wasn’t just Rohit who gained in the latest rankings update. Axar Patel also earned a boost after a strong all-round performance in Sydney, moving up six places to 31st among bowlers and four spots to eighth among all-rounders, just behind Mitchell Santner.
In the bowling charts, Santner jumped three places to fourth, while Josh Hazlewood rose two spots to eighth. Among batters, England’s Harry Brook made an impressive 23-place leap to 25th.
The Test rankings also saw movement following South Africa’s eight-wicket win over Pakistan in Rawalpindi. Spinner Keshav Maharaj, named Player of the Match for his nine wickets, climbed nine spots to a career-best 13th among Test bowlers. Simon Harmer also rose 26 places to 45th after a six-wicket haul in the second innings.
In the batting charts, Aiden Markram advanced two places to 15th, while Tony de Zorzi gained seven spots to 47th. Kagiso Rabada climbed eight places to 11th among all-rounders.
For Pakistan, captain Shan Masood moved up five positions to joint-42nd among batters. Meanwhile, in the T20I rankings, South Africa’s Corbin Bosch surged 40 places to 53rd, Mohammad Nawaz rose eight spots to sixth among all-rounders, and young opener Saim Ayub gained five positions to 49th in batting.
