ICC rankings: Virat Kohli crosses 900-point mark, Bumrah tops bowling list

Agencies
February 21, 2018

Dubai, Feb 21: India captain Virat Kohli became the only second batsman in the history of the game to cross the 900-point mark concurrently in Tests and ODIs, while pacer Jasprit Bumrah grabbed the joint top position among bowlers in the latest ICCODI player rankings released on Tuesday.

Kohli has become the only second batsman after South Africa’s AB de Villiers to attain the 900-point mark concurrently in both formats and one among only five to have crossed 900 points in both forms of the game.

The 29-year-old consolidated his top position with 558 runs in the 5-1 series win over South Africa, during which he slammed three centuries.

Kohli thus moved ahead of Brian Lara in the all-timers’ list, having also overtaken him in the all-timers’ Test list last month. He is now seventh in the ODI list of all-time rankings that is led by Vivian Richards with 935 points.

The India captain is now a good 22 points clear of Sachin Tendulkar, whose ODI career high of 887 points came against Zimbabwe in January 1998. Kohli’s aggregate is the best since Brian Lara reached 911 points in March 1993.

Shikar Dhawan another notable gainer

India opener Shikhar Dhawan, who aggregated 323 runs in the South Africa series, is another notable gainer in the latest rankings even as a clutch of Indian bowlers made rapid strides in the latest rankings, including the wrist-spin duo of Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuleep Yadav.

Leg-spinner Chahal has moved up eight slots to 21st position with 16 wickets in the South Africa series while Chinaman bowler Yadav’s 17 scalps have helped him move up 15 positions to take the 47th position. Bumrah’s eight wickets have lifted him two places to take the joint-first position.

Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan has joined Bumrah at the top with 16 wickets in the series against Zimbabwe which Afghanistan won 4-1 to become the youngest to attain top ranking.

His 51 runs in two innings in the series, including a brisk 43 in the final match in Sharjah on Monday, has also helped him break into the top-five in the list of all-rounders while he has also moved up 11 slots to take 114th place among batsmen.

For South Africa, Faf du Plessis’ 120-run knock in the first ODI against India, after which he was ruled out due to an injury, has seen him gain one slot to reach eight position.

Meanwhile, India (123) continued to top the ODI team rankings, followed by South Africa (117) and England (116).

Interestingly, Afghanistan have overtaken Zimbabwe in the MRF Tyres ICC ODI Team Rankings. Afghanistan have gained four points to take 10th position with 55 points while Zimbabwe have lost three points to be on 50 points.

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News Network
April 24,2020

New Delhi, Apr 24: Veteran off-spinner Harbhajan Singh said he doesn't think Mahendra Singh Dhoni will play for India again, adding to the guessing game over the future of the superstar former captain.

Dhoni, 38, has not appeared for club or country since last year's 50-over World Cup and India's coronavirus lockdown could threaten his chances of getting back into the national team.

The Indian Premier League, the main platform before this year's scheduled T20 World Cup, is likely to be truncated or cancelled because of the pandemic.

Harbhajan, who plays with Dhoni at IPL side Chennai Super Kings, said international retirement was on the cards for Dhoni and that he was increasingly being asked about his teammate.

"It's up to him. You need to know whether he wants to play for India again," Harbhajan said in an online forum.

"As far as I know him, he won't want to wear India's blue jersey again. IPL he will play, but for India I think he had decided the (2019) World Cup was his last."

Dhoni, who gave up Test cricket in 2014, started training for the Super Kings in March but has not commented on his international future.

Dhoni led India to win the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup in 2007. He hit a six to seal the 2011 World Cup final victory and, along with it, his status as a national hero. He has amassed 10,773 runs from 350 ODIs.

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News Network
May 2,2020

Melbourne, May 2: After becoming the number one side in Test cricket, Australia's head coach Justin Langer has said that his team has won back the respect of the country.

Australia dethroned India from the top spot in Tests and now the Men in Blue are in the third place.

Langer came in as the coach of Australia after the 2018 ball-tampering scandal and it took him some time to get the side back to winning ways.

Ever since the return of David Warner and Steve Smith, Australia went on to become a commendable side and the results reflect that.

"We have got lots of work to do to become the team we want to be. But over the last couple of years, not only have we performed well on the field, we have performed well off it. We have earned some respect back from other teams around the world but also from Australia," Langer said in an official statement.

"When we started on this journey, there had been a lot of talk about Australia wanting to be No. 1 in the world in all three forms of the game.

We took a different approach. Not once did we talk about being No. 1 ranked in the world. We wanted to be No.1 in our values and process. That is what I am most proud of," he added.

In the latest ICC rankings update, that rates all matches played since May 2019 at 100 per cent and those of the previous two years at 50 per cent, Australia (116) have taken over from India as the top-ranked side in the ICC men's Test team rankings with New Zealand (115) remaining in second place.

India is now third with 114 points. With only two points separating them, this is the second closest the top three teams have been since the Test rankings were launched in 2003.

The closest for the top three teams were in January 2016, when India had led Australia and South Africa by a single point.

Australia has also moved to the top spot in the T20I rankings for the first time in the format.

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Agencies
June 9,2020

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has confirmed interim changes to its playing regulations, which include the ban on the use of saliva to shine the ball and allowing home umpires in international series as per a release issued by the international body.

The ICC Chief Executives' Committee (CEC) ratified recommendations from the Anil Kumble-led Cricket Committee, aimed at mitigating the risks posed by the COVID-19 virus and protect the safety of players and match officials when cricket resumes.

COVID-19 Replacements

Teams will be allowed to replace players displaying symptoms of COVID-19 during a Test match. In line with concussion replacements, the Match Referee will approve the nearest like-for-like replacement.

However, the regulation for COVID-19 replacements will not be applicable in ODIs and T20Is.

Ban on Saliva on Ball

Players will not be permitted to use saliva to shine the ball. If a player does apply saliva to the ball, the umpires will manage the situation with some leniency during an initial period of adjustment for the players, but subsequent instances will result in the team receiving a warning.

Whenever saliva is applied to the ball, the umpires will be instructed to clean the ball before play recommences.

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