Pakistan’s batting trio Babar Azam, Saim Ayub, and Salman Agha make significant gains in the latest ICC T20I Rankings after an impressive 2-1 series win over South Africa, highlighting Pakistan’s growing dominance ahead of the 2026 T20 World Cup. (Image Credit: Arab News)
Pakistan's unbeaten run in 2025 has started to reflect on the ICC T20I Rankings, and with four bilateral-series wins this year, the Men in Green have been unstoppable in recent times, as their latest 2-1 victory over South Africa only fortifies that storyline.
Three leading batters - Babar Azam, Saim Ayub and Salman Agha - have taken noticeable leaps in the latest rankings update. Per ICC, Babar Azam has surged nine places to joint 30th, Saim Ayub has risen ten spots to 39th, while Salman Agha also jumped ten places to 54th.
Each of them played defining roles in Pakistan's home success against the Proteas, combining intent and stability in a format where consistency is an anomaly. The rise underlines Pakistan's evolving blueprint in T20 cricket: a heady mix of experience, fearlessness, and adaptability.
Whereas Pakistan's batters are on the rise, at No. 1 is the young sensation from India, Abhishek Sharma. The opener from India has been dominating the shortest format and scored big against Australia and England earlier this season.
His high-octane yet calculated approach has made him stay ahead of experienced names such as Babar and Shai Hope. As the next T20 World Cup draws nearer,
Consistency, then, could well turn out to be Abhishek's greatest weapon. Fearless strokeplay meshed with a calm temperament continues to redefine what modern T20 batting looks like for the left-hander.
Outside of the Indian and Pakistani surge, several global stars have made grounds this week.
West Indies captain Shai Hope jumped two places to 12th, Bangladesh's Tanzid Hasan leaped 20 places to 17th while Afghanistan's Rahmanullah Gurbaz (up by three to 15th) and Ibrahim Zadran (up six to 20th) also earned rewards for their recent form.
In the bowling charts, Varun Chakravarthy remains top of the T20I rankings, clinging on to pole position with his mystery spin. Australia's Josh Hazlewood leaped two places to 10th, with Afghanistan's Mujeeb Ur Rahman up 13 to 14th and Bangladesh's Mahedi Hasan up six to 17th.
The all-rounders had a shuffle too: Sikandar Raza jumped to second and Roston Chase rose to third, with both being rewarded for the impact of their recent performances.
The ODI rankings had some movement as well. New Zealand’s Daryl Mitchell jumped two spots to third overall among batters after a brilliant series against England where he scored 178 runs and was dismissed only once.
Fellow Kiwi Rachin Ravindra also gained four spots to reach 14th. England also had reason to smile: Jofra Archer moved up two places to third among ODI bowlers, behind Rashid Khan, after his three-wicket haul against the Black Caps.
