New Delhi — India’s mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy has achieved a historic milestone by becoming the world’s No. 1 bowler in the latest ICC Men’s T20I bowling rankings.
The 34-year-old spinner climbed to the top after his disciplined performances in the ongoing T20 Asia Cup in the UAE. Chakravarthy bowled a miserly two-over spell conceding just four runs against the UAE, followed by figures of 1/24 in four overs against Pakistan. With these efforts, he displaced New Zealand’s Jacob Duffy, who had held the No. 1 spot since March.
Chakravarthy now joins Jasprit Bumrah and Ravi Bishnoi as only the third Indian to occupy the No. 1 position in T20I bowling rankings.
Meanwhile, several bowlers have made notable gains. Sri Lanka’s Nuwan Thushara climbed six places to break into the top 10 at No. 6. Pakistan’s left-arm pacer Sufiyan Muqeem rose four spots to 11th, while leg-spinner Abrar Ahmed jumped 11 places to a career-best 16th. Among Indians, Axar Patel moved to 12th, Kuldeep Yadav leaped 16 spots to 23rd, and Bumrah advanced to 40th. Afghanistan’s Noor Ahmad also surged eight places to 25th.
On the batting front, India’s Abhishek Sharma continued his impressive rise. After scoring 30 off 16 balls against the UAE and 31 off 13 against Pakistan, he added 55 rating points to strengthen his position at the top with 884 points. England’s Phil Salt climbed to second following a strong series against South Africa, pushing Jos Buttler to third. India’s Shubman Gill also improved, moving up four places to 39th.
With the Asia Cup in full swing, both Indian batting and bowling stars are making their mark on the global stage, signaling a strong run of form ahead of the ICC T20 World Cup.
