Suryakumar Yadav (AP Photo) NEW DELHI: India’s preparations for the T20 World Cup received a major blow on Wednesday when skipper Suryakumar Yadav moved back to the top tier of the ICC T20I men’s batting rankings, underscoring the team’s growing dominance just days before the global showpiece.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SIGN UP NOW!Suryakumar climbed five places to seventh after a prolific run in the ongoing five-match home series against New Zealand, over which India lead 3-0. The one-time world No.1 looked back at her best in flurry, scoring 32, 82 not out and 57 not out, combining innovation with control as India tightened their grip on the series.
Sanju Samson headache for Team India | Is Ishan Kishan the right choice?
The bigger picture, however, paints an even more dire warning for opponents. India now boast three batsmen in the top ten of the T20I rankings, with Abhishek Sharma proudly at the top spot and Tilak Varma close behind at third. The rankings update also saw rewards for several other Indian batsmen. Ishan Kishan rejoined the list at 64th after a blistering 76 off 32 balls in Raipur, while Shivam Dube jumped nine places to 58th and Rinku Singh rose 13 places to 68th, reflecting the breadth of contributions from the top-ranked T20I side.
Vote
Who do you think will be India’s key player in the T20 World Cup?
Apart from India, Afghanistan enjoyed remarkable gains after a 2-1 series win over West Indies in Dubai. Ibrahim Zadran moved to 13th, Rahmanullah Gurbaz climbed to 15th and player of the series Darwish Rasooli jumped 29 places to 87th.In the bowling rankings, Afghan spinner Mujeeb ur Rahman made it to the top 10, while India’s Jasprit Bumrah and Ravi Bishnoi also climbed. Hardik Pandya has made strides across categories, improving in batting, bowling and all-rounders.
