Lizelle Lee loses top spot in ODI batters’ list but moves up to No. 11 in the shortest format
Scores of 23 in 22 balls and 47 in 31 balls against South Africa have taken Shafali Verma back past Beth Mooney to the No. 1 position in the T20I batter’s rankings for women in the latest update, released on the day of the final game of the three-match series, which South Africa have already won 2-0.
Verma had reached the top spot after scoring 163 in five innings at a strike rate of 158.25 at the 2020 T20 World Cup. Mooney was the top-scorer then, with 259 runs in six outings, and moved to the top after the home series against New Zealand in September – she scored only 37 runs in three innings then, but with India not playing any international cricket till this series, Mooney went past Verma on the table.
Lizelle Lee, meanwhile, had a mixed run in the rankings. She slipped from the perch in the ODI rankings within a week of going past Tammy Beaumont because she missed the last game of the series against India, but her 45-ball 70 in the second T20I took her up three spots to No. 11 in the rankings for the shortest format.
Lower in the table, scores of 52 and 31 from Harleen Deol made her zoom 262 places to No. 85.
There were some movements in the bowlers’ chart too. For South Africa, de Klerk has moved up five places to 68th, Ayabonga Khaka has gone up two places to 35th and Nonkululeko Mlaba has shot up 14 places to 75th. For India, Rajeshwari Gayakwad has risen from No. 34 to No. 25.
In ODIs, apart from Lee losing the top spot among batters, Marizanne Kapp has moved from fourth to second among bowlers and overtaken Stafanie Taylor to No. 2 in the list of allrounders, which is led by Elysse Perry. Mignon du Preez has gained four slots to reach 16th position after her knock of 57 in the last ODI, and Anneke Bosch has progressed in both the batting and bowling lists – 58 slots to 70th among batters and five places to 85th among bowlers. Tumi Sekhukhune has advanced eight places and is 37th in the bowlers’ list.
India lost the ODI series 4-1 – which took South Africa up to No. 2 in the team rankings, while India stayed at No. 4 – but their captain Mithali Raj moved up one place to eighth after hitting an unbeaten 79.