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Smriti Mandhana Tops ODI Batting, Alana King Claims Bowling No. 1

India's Smriti Mandhana has ascended to the top of the ICC Women's ODI batting rankings, overtaking South Africa's Laura Wolvaardt. Australia's Alana King ended Sophie Ecclestone's nearly four-year reign as the top-ranked bowler after a seven-wicket series haul. The rankings update followed a multi-format series where Australia won the ODIs, with Alyssa Healy retiring from the format while ranked fourth. Ashleigh Gardner continues to dominate the all-rounder rankings, holding a significant lead over her nearest competitor.

Key Points: Mandhana, King Reach Top of ICC Women's ODI Rankings

  • Mandhana tops batting rankings
  • King claims top bowling spot
  • Healy retires from ODIs at No. 4
  • Gardner leads all-rounder rankings
2 min read

Mandhana, King attain top spot in ODI rankings

India's Smriti Mandhana climbs to No. 1 ODI batter, Australia's Alana King ends Sophie Ecclestone's reign as top bowler in latest ICC update.

"King ended England's Sophie Ecclestone's near four-year reign at the top of the bowlers' rankings. - ICC"

Dubai, March 3

India batter Smriti Mandhana and Australia spinner have climbed to the top of the Women's ODI bowling and batting rankings, respectively, in the latest update released by the ICC on Tuesday.

The pair made the move in the three ODIs within the week of action, with Mandhana making notable scores of 58 and 31 in the week, which was enough to move past Laura Wolvaardt (790), who will have the opportunity to reclaim the spot when the Proteas take on New Zealand across March and April.

Meanwhile, King (775) ended England's Sophie Ecclestone's near four-year reign at the top of the bowlers' rankings. Across the week King claimed seven wickets at an average of 16.71, claiming 4-33 from 10 overs in the third ODI, helping the hosts to a 185-run victory. It propelled her to her first No. 1 rating, with her rating of 775 also a career high.

King is joined by four Australian bowlers in the top eight - Ash Gardner (third), Annabel Sutherland (fifth), Megan Schutt (seventh) and Kim Garth (eighth).

There were a number of other performers from the series to enjoy rankings boosts.

After losing two of the three T20Is on home soil, Australia bounced back to claim the three ODIs as part of the multi-format series and found success through Beth Mooney, Ash Gardner and Alyssa Healy, the latter calling time on her ODI career.

Making a century in her final match in the format, Healy signs off in fourth place on the rankings (744), wedged between Mooney (749) and Gardner (724).

Despite losing all three matches, there was joy for India skippper Harmanpreet Kaur (652), who moved four spots back into the top 10 for batters (ninth), thanks to scores of 53, 54 and 25.

Gardner (516), meanwhile, holds the No. 1 spot in the ODI All-Rounder Rankings, almost 100 rating points ahead of the West Indies' Hayley Matthews (418) in second.

Annabel Sutherland (408) made a two-spot move on the All-Rounder Rankings, while youngster Georgia Voll (534) made a 23-spot jump to 34th in the Batting Rankings after averaging 54 in the three ODIs.

Annabel Sutherland (408) made a two-spot move on the All-Rounder Rankings, while youngster Georgia Voll (534) made a 23-spot jump to 34th in the Batting Rankings after averaging 54 in the three ODIs.

- IANS

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Reader Comments

A
Aman W
Congratulations to both players! Alana King dethroning Ecclestone after 4 years is huge. But honestly, our bowling attack needs to step up. We can't just rely on Smriti and Harmanpreet with the bat if we want to win big trophies consistently.
R
Rohit P
Amazing achievement for Smriti! She truly deserves it. The Australian team's dominance in the bowling rankings is scary though - four in the top eight! That's the benchmark we need to aim for.
S
Sarah B
What a week for women's cricket! Alyssa Healy scoring a century in her final ODI is the perfect fairytale ending. Respect from a cricket fan in the UK. The depth in the Australian side is just phenomenal.
N
Nikhil C
Finally some good news for Indian cricket fans! 🎉 Mandhana's technique is so pleasing to watch. But we lost all three ODIs... rankings are nice, but winning matches is what truly matters. The team needs to find a way to convert individual brilliance into team victories.
K
Kavya N
So happy for Smriti di! She's an inspiration for so many young girls taking up the sport. The BCCI must ensure our women's team gets more matches and better facilities to build a world-beating squad, not just world-class individuals.

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