LAHORE: A number of Pakistan players have improved their ODI rankings released by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Among them top-order right-handed batsman Babar Azam has made significant progress, jumping to third spot in the batsmen rankings with 827 points.

The 24-year-old Babar, who was earlier seventh, climbed four spots to attain third position after smashing 474 runs with the help of one century and three half-centuries in nine league matches of the ongoing ICC World Cup.

Similarly, Babar’s team-mate and left-handed opener Imam-ul-Haq too improved his ranking and is now on 11th position on the ODI rankings. Imam scored a century against Bangladesh at Lord’s on July 5, Pakistan’s last league fixture at the World Cup.

Haris Sohail, another Pakistani left-hander who bats in the middle-order, made a considerable improvement in his ranking and has climbed to 36th spot from 56th that has held before the start of the mega event. He scored 198 runs in five matches, with two back-to-back fifties, at the mega event.

All-rounder Imad Wasim retained fourth spot in the ODI all-rounders’ rankings whereas he jumped 17 spots in batting rankings with his 162 runs in five innings at the mega event.

The men in green make an improvement in the bowling department as well.

Left-arm pacers Mohammad Amir and Shaheen Shah Afridi are now ranked at 12th and 23rd position, respectively. Amir, who has claimed 77 wickets in 59 ODI matches, took 17 wickets in nine World Cup matches with best figures of 5-30 against Australia.

Shaheen, the youngest bowler to grab a five-wicket haul at the World Cup, was the star of Pakistan’s bowling line-up in the last three matches of the campaign. The lanky left-armer claimed 16 wickets in the World Cup including 6-36 against Bangladesh, the best-ever bowling figures by a Pakistani in a World Cup game.

Leg-spinner Shadab Khan, who joined the squad after recovering from illness just before the World Cup, has gained 594 points to claim 25th spot on the ICC ranking for bowlers.

In ICC ODI team rankings, Pakistan are at number six with 98 points.

Published in Dawn, July 9th, 2019