England's Dawid Malan achieves highest-ever rating points in T20I history

Image Credits: ICC official website

England's Dawid Malan has attained the highest-ever rating points for batsmen in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s T20I Player Rankings after a terrific run saw him top the series aggregate with a total of 173 runs and help England thrash South Africa 3-0.

With this, the 33-year-old left-hander has reached 915 points to become the first to cross the 900-point mark after Australian Aaron Finch’s 900-point achievement in July 2018.

Malan now enjoys a comfortable 44-point lead over Pakistan’s Babar Azam, whom he overtook to become number one in September this year, the ICC press release stated. 

Malan’s player of the series performance included a match-winning 99 not out in the final match which also helped England leapfrog Australia to take top position in the ICC Men’s T20I Team Rankings.

England, who had started the series at 271 points, are now level with Australia at 275 points but ahead on decimal points. Virat Kohli's India are standing at the third spot in the teams rankings with 266 points.

South Africa and New Zealand retain their fifth and sixth positions while the West Indies have slipped behind Afghanistan to 10th place after losing 2-0 to New Zealand in another series, performances of which are also included in Wednesday’s rankings update.

Meanwhile, England’s Jos Buttler has gained seven spots to reach 21st position while South Africa’s Rassie van der Dussen’s continued good form, which saw him score 136 runs in the series, has lifted him 17 places to a career-best fifth position. Faf du Plessis’s return to form, with an aggregate of 121 runs, has pushed him into the top 20.

As far as ICC T20I rankings for bowlers are concerned, England’s leg-spinner Adil Rashid is back to the 700-point mark, gaining three places to reach number 4. He is just one spot below his career-best third position achieved in November 2018. The top seven bowlers are all spinners, with Tabraiz Shamsi, South Africa’s top ranked bowler in 5th place.

Chris Jordan, who became England’s leading T20I wicket-taker in the third match against South Africa with his 66th wicket, has gained one place to reach 12th rank.

Fast bowler Lungi Ngidi makes an entry into the top 50 bowlers for the first time after taking four wickets in the series. His previous best was 67th in September this year.

The series in New Zealand saw the home side’s Lockie Ferguson leap 45 slots to 32nd position after finishing as the most successful bowler in the series with seven wickets, which included a player of the match effort of five for 21 in the first match.

Glenn Phillips celebrated his recall to the New Zealand T20I side for the first time in two years by smashing a century in the second match and climbing into the top 100 batsmen for the first time – ending the series in 86th place. 

Kieron Pollard was the West Indian star of the series, scoring 103 runs at a strike rate of 198. That was good enough to take him up 18 places to the 57th rank with the bat and up to seventh place in the all-rounders’ table.