@AFP
India avenged the last year’s 2-3 loss against Kangaroos in style at Bangalore as the Men in Blue clinched the 3-match series against Australia by 2-1 after facing a 10-wickets drubbing in the opening game. India captain Virat Kohli and vice-captain Rohit Sharma were the standouts in the series with 183 and 171 runs scored respectively. Virat Kohli was picked player of the series while his deputy Rohit Sharma was chosen man of the match for his match-winning 119 runs knock in the decider at Bengaluru the other night.
Following the stellar performances, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have clinched the top two positions in the ICC ODI batting rankings. India skipper Kohli (886) gained two points while Rohit Sharma (868) gained three points in the recently concluded Australia series.
With 829 points, Pakistan’s Babar Azam is third in the list released by ICC on Monday.
Meanwhile, Shikhar Dhawan has also improved his position in the list and has reached to the 15th spot. The Southpaw scored 170 runs in two innings with two fifties and didn’t bat in third ODI after injuring his shoulder in Australia’s inning.
While skipper Virat Kohli is the number 01 ODI batsman, Jasprit Bumrah is still at the top of bowlers ranking released by ICC. With 764 points, Jasprit Bumrah is number 01 ODI bowler followed by New Zealand’s Trent Boult (737 points) at the second place.
The home series against Australia has also helped all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja to move up in the all-rounder’s list. He has gained four places in the list and joins Sean Williams at No. 10 in the latest released ICC Men’s ODI Rankings for all-rounders. Jadeja took four wickets in the series and also scored 45 runs in two innings.
After thrashing Kangaroos at the home, team India faces another tough challenge in the form of Kiwis as their next assignment. India’s schedule against New Zealand –
T20Is
Jan 24 – New Zealand vs India, 1st T20I – Eden Park, Auckland
Jan 26 – New Zealand vs India, 2nd T20I – Eden Park, Auckland
Jan 29 – New Zealand vs India, 3rd T20I – Seddon Park, Hamilton
Jan 31 – New Zealand vs India, 4th T20I – Westpac Stadium, Wellington
Feb 02 – New Zealand vs India, 5th T20I – Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui
ODIs
Feb 05 – New Zealand vs India, 1st ODI – Seddon Park, Hamilton
Feb 08 – New Zealand vs India, 2nd ODI – Eden Park, Auckland
Feb 11 – New Zealand vs India, 3rd ODI – Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui
Tests
Feb 21, Fri – Feb 25 – New Zealand vs India, 1st Test – Basin Reserve, Wellington
Feb 29, Sat – Mar 04 – New Zealand vs India, 2nd Test – Hagley Oval, Christchurch