The International Cricket Council has released the latest women’s T20I rankings ahead of the upcoming Women’s Asia Cup in 2024. Recently, Harmanpreet Kaur-led India managed to draw the three-match T20I series 1-1 against South Africa at home.
Indian players make big gains in ICC's T20I rankings
Several Indian players have benefited from that series, which is reflected in the recently released ICC T20I rankings. India’s captain Harmanpreet Kaur and destructive opener Shafali Verma are among the Indian players who excelled with the bat in the recently concluded T20I series. Harmanpreet moved up three places to 12th with 613 rating points, while Shafali climbed two spots to 15th with 605 rating points. Smriti retained her fifth position in the rankings, remaining India’s top scorer with 100 runs in the series against South Africa. Talking about bowlers, Radha Yadav jumped from 23rd to 15th, while Pooja Vastrakar moved up six places to 23rd, and young sensation Shreyanka Patil climbed up nine spots to 60th.
Laura Wolvaardt retained her fourth position after the T20 series against India. She scored 33 in the first T20I and 9 in the series decider. Suzi Bates, on the other hand, went down one place due to her poor form in the T20I series against England. England Women are currently leading 4-0 against New Zealand in a five-match T20I series in England. Sri Lanka’s Inoshi Priyadarshani went up two places, going to 7th from 9th, despite losing Sri Lanka's three-match T20I series by 2-1 against the West Indies.
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Mooney, Ecclestone dominance continues
Sophie Ecclestone had been a prime reason behind England Women getting better off New Zealand in the five-match T20I series home. Sophie Ecclestone has taken eight wickets in four matches, with one more to be played. Her recent T20I performance has helped her retain the No. 1 spot in the ICC Women’s T20I rankings. Australia’s Beth Mooney, who last played a T20I in April, is still at the top of the ICC Women’s T20I rankings. Beth scored 65 runs in 2 matches against Bangladesh. Behind Beth on the list is her teammate Tahila McGrath. Australia, the defending champions of the T20 World Cup, will pose a serious threat to defend it again.
ICC Women’s T20I Rankings (Batting)
1. Beth Mooney
2. Tahila Mcgrath
3. Hayley Matthews
4. Laura Wolvaardt
5. Smriti Mandhana
6. Tazmin Brits
7. Alyssa Healy (+1)
8. Suzie Bates (-1)
9. Chamari Athapaththu
10. Sophie Devine
ICC Women’s T20I Rankings (Bowling)
1. Sophie Ecclestone
2. Sarah Glenn
3. Deepti Sharma
4. Sadia Iqbal
5. Haylel Matthews
6. Rabeya Khan
7. Inoshi Priyadarshan (+2)
8. Charlie Dean
9. Nashra Sandhu (+2)
10. Darcie Brown (-3)
India eye title defense
This will be the 9th edition of the Women's Asia Cup. The defending champions, India, are placed in Group A alongside Pakistan, the UAE, and Nepal. The Women in Blue will kick off their campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan on July 19 in the second game of the tournament. All matches will be held at the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium in Dambulla. The Women’s Asia Cup will be an ideal preparation for the T20 World Cup later this year, held in Bangladesh. Australia are the defending champions of the T20 World Cup.
Indian Women’s Asia Cup squad:
Harmanpreet Kaur (C), Richa Ghosh (WK), Uma Chetry (WK), Smriti Mandhana (VC), Shafali Verma, Deepti Sharma, Pooja Vastrakar, Arundhati Reddy, Jemimah Rodrigues, Renuka Thakur, Dayalan Hemalatha, Asha Sobhana, Radha Yadav, Shreyanka Patil, Sajana Sajeevan.
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