Dhaka: Virat Kohli enters the forthcoming India-Bangladesh ODI series as the highest-ranked batsman on either side in fourth place in the Reliance ICC Player Rankingsfor ODI Batsmen. The Delhi-born right-hander is one of the three India batsmen inside the top 10 alongside Shikhar Dhawan (seventh) and Dhoni (ninth).
Mushfiqur Rahim is Bangladesh’s highest-ranked batsman in 18th position, five points adrift of England’s Jos Buttler, while much will depend on Tamim Iqbal (27th), Shakib Al Hasan (33rd) and Nasir Hossain (42nd) as the hosts bid to create daylight between the West Indies and Pakistan.
In the Reliance ICC Players Rankings for ODI Bowlers, Bangladesh’s Shakib, who hit the 150-cap mark last time out against Pakistan, has seventh-ranked Saeed Ajmal in his sights. The left-arm spinner will also be aiming to hit the 200-wicket mark during the series as he currently stands on 195. In eighth place, he is the highest-ranked bowler heading into the series.
However, India has four bowlers inside the top 20, with Ravichandran Ashwin (12th) leading the way. Five points then separate Umesh Yadav (16th), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (17th) and Ravindra Jadeja (18th).
The Reliance ICC Player Rankings for ODI All-rounders still sees Sri Lanka’s Tillakaratne Dilshan lead the way with a six-point gap over second-placed Shakib, who, in turn, holds a 20-point lead over Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh faces India in the three-match One-Day Internationals (ODIs) series in Mirpur on Thursday knowing that a series win will give it a boost in the Reliance ICC ODI Team Rankings as two places in the coveted ICC Champions Trophy 2017 are still up for grabs.
Host England, plus the seven next highest-ranked sides on the Reliance ICC ODI Team Rankings as on 30 September 2015, will progress to the tournament, which will be staged from 1 to 19 June in England and Wales.
Bangladesh is currently level with the West Indies on 88 points but is ranked below the West Indies in eighth position, while Pakistan is one point behind in ninth spot. If Bangladesh wins the series 3-0, then it will move to 96 points while a 2-1 win will see the host rise to 93 points. Even if Bangladesh loses the series 2-1, it will be enough to put it ahead of the West Indies in seventh place by a fraction of a point.
MS Dhoni’s side, in contrast, can reduce leader Australia’s advantage to 10 points should it sweep the series three-nil. In this scenario, Bangladesh will slip to ninth position on 96 points.
If India wins the series 2-1, it will remain on 117 points, while a 2-1 loss will mean it will join New Zealand on 115 points but will still be ranked above Brendon McCullum’s side, which is currently in the middle of a highly entertaining series with England and holds a 2-1 lead after the first three games. The series concludes in Chester-le-Street on 20 June.
ENGLAND V NEW ZEALAND
Meanwhile, with New Zealand holding a 2-1 advantage over England with two games remaining, several players have made significant advances on both sides.
Black Caps’ Ross Taylor leads the way as he has climbed to a career-high eighth position to date following scores of 57, 119 not out and 110 in the series so far. Kane Williamson has moved up a position to sixth after accumulating scores of 45, 93 and 118.
England players making positive advances include Joe Root, who has joined Rohit Sharma in 12th position after scoring 164 runs in three games. Jos Buttler has also leapt nine spots to 17th after accumulating 183 runs to date, while England skipper Eoin Morgan, who is third on the list of highest run-getters after three matches following scores of 50, 88 and 71, has vaulted 11 places to 34th position.
New Zealand’s left-arm fast bowler, Trent Boult, has continued his fine run of form in 50-over cricket, which saw him selected for the ICC Cricket World Cup Team of the Tournament. His six wickets for a miserly 108 runs to date has lifted him up three spots to joint-second alongside South Africa’s Imran Tahir.
England bowler Steven Finn’s five wickets to date have also pushed him up two places to 13th, while Tim Southee (up one to 19th) and Matt Henry (up 12 to 53rd) are also on the rise.
With the fourth (Trent Bridge) and fifth (Chester-le-Street) ODIs down for decision over the coming days, further movements are expected on both sides.
Upcoming fixtures
Bangladesh v India:
18 Jun – 1st ODI, Mirpur (d/n)
21 Jun – 2nd ODI, Mirpur (d/n)
24 Jun – 3rd ODI, Mirpur (d/n)
England v New Zealand:
17 June – 4th ODI, Nottingham (d/n)
19 Jun – 5th ODI, Durham (d)
Reliance ICC ODI Championship table (as on 16 June, after first three England-New Zealand matches and ahead of Bangladesh-India series):
Rank Team Points
1 Australia 129
2 India 117
3 New Zealand 115
4 South Africa 112
5 Sri Lanka 106
6 England 95
7 West Indies 88
8 Bangladesh 88
9 Pakistan 87
10 Ireland 50
11 Zimbabwe 44
12 Afghanistan 41
Reliance ICC ODI Player Rankings (after first three England-New Zealand matches and ahead of Bangladesh-India series):
Batsmen
Rank (+/-) Player Team Points Ave HS Rating
1 ( - ) AB de Villiers SA 902! 53.65 902 v NZ at Auckland 2015
2 ( - ) K. Sangakkara SL 860 41.98 861 v Sco at Hobart 2015
3 ( - ) Hashim Amla SA 828 55.26 901 v Eng at Trent Bridge 2012
4 ( - ) Virat Kohli Ind 822 51.47 886 v Ban at Fatullah 2014
5 ( - ) T. Dilshan SL 793 39.65 802 v Sco at Hobart 2015
6 (+1) K. Williamson NZ 775 46.69 789 v Aus at Auckland 2015
7 (-1) Shikhar Dhawan Ind 756 43.98 794 v SA at Melbourne 2015
8 (+3) Ross Taylor NZ 736! 43.01 736 v Eng at Southampton 2015
9 (-1) MS Dhoni Ind 731 52.46 836 v Aus at Delhi 2009
10 (-1) Glenn Maxwell Aus 720 35.05 724 v Pak at Adelaide 2015