Haris Rauf becomes top Pakistani bowler in ICC T20I rankings

Pakistan speedster Haris Rauf has jumped to 11th spot in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s T20I Bowler Rankings, trumping leg-spinner Shadab Khan to become the top-ranked Pakistan bowler.

Rauf's rise in the ranking comes after he claimed 10 wickets in the first three T20Is of the ongoing five-match series against New Zealand.

In an official statement on Wednesday, the ICC said: “The Pakistan quick [Rauf] was just ahead of Shaheen Afridi last week and behind Shadab Khan, who was 12th in the T20I bowling rankings. Ten wickets spread across the first three T20Is has seen Rauf move up five places in the rankings to occupy the 11th spot.”

“He also achieved career-high ratings of 657 points in the process and could potentially enter the top 10 by the end of the five-match series,” the statement added.

Ish Sodhi (620) and Shaheen (624) have also jumped four and two spots, respectively in the bowler’s rankings.

Sri Lanka’s Prabath Jayasuriya also made giant strides in the rankings after continuing his impressive start to red-ball cricket. The left-arm spinner bagged a ten-wicket match haul against Ireland in the first Test, his second such figures in a brief six-match Test career.

According to the statement, “Jayasuriya has 43 wickets in six Tests already with five five-wicket hauls. A career-best seven-wicket haul in the Galle Test against Ireland ensured he moved up by 13 places in the ICC Test bowling rankings to enter the top 20.”

“While achieving career-best ratings of 669, Jayasuriya also became the top-ranked Sri Lankan bowler in Test cricket. Ramesh Mendis (576), who moved up by three places after a four-wicket haul in the second innings of the Test against Ireland, is placed next at No.32,” it added.

Meanwhile, Sri Lankan skipper Dimuth Karunaratne, who made 179 off 235 balls, achieved career-high ratings of 783 and moved up one place to No.9.

Dinesh Chandimal, who notched up an unbeaten hundred against Ireland, also moved up by four places to enter the top 15. He is now placed 14th with 693 rating points.

Chandimal averages over 90 in the longest format of the game since the start of 2022.