Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan has reclaimed his throne as the world’s No. 1 ODI bowler, displacing South Africa’s Keshav Maharaj after a remarkable series against Bangladesh in Abu Dhabi. The leg-spinner’s brilliance powered Afghanistan to a commanding 3-0 sweep, with Rashid finishing as the leading wicket-taker in the series with 11 wickets, including a five-wicket haul in the second match.
Rashid Khan already a white-ball legend
It is a shame that Afghanistan don’t get to play enough Test matches. We, fans, are missing out on how lethal Rashid Khan could be if given a longer run in red ball cricket.
This latest surge has taken Rashid to 710 rating points, 30 clear of Maharaj, marking his return to the top for the first time since November 2024. The Afghan talisman first reached the summit back in 2018 and, seven years later, continues to redefine consistency and control in white-ball cricket. He is already the leading wicket-taker in T20 cricket history, having taken 678 scalps at an unbelievable economy of 6.58.
In 117 ODIs, Rashid now boasts 210 wickets at an astonishing average of 19.6, making him the sixth fastest in history to the 200-wicket milestone. His artistry has earned him six four-wicket hauls and five five-wicket hauls, with his best figures of seven for 18 against the West Indies still etched in ODI folklore.
Against Bangladesh, Rashid once again proved his dominance as he now has 65 wickets in 34 white-ball innings against them, the most by any bowler against a Bangladesh in modern limited-overs cricket. He also became the first Asian bowler to complete the rare double of 150 T20I and 200 ODI wickets. Afghanistan’s pace all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai too enjoyed a career-best 21st position after a 19-place jump, while opener Ibrahim Zadran climbed to a career-high second spot among batters after amassing 213 runs and winning Player of the Series.
Kuldeep Yadav now has career-best rankings
In the ICC’s latest update, Indian players also made significant moves. Left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav achieved a career-best 14th position in the Test bowling rankings after an eight-wicket match haul against West Indies. He was the Player of the Match in the Delhi Test. Among batters, Yashasvi Jaiswal rose to fifth following his fluent 175 in Delhi, while KL Rahul gained two places to 33rd after twin scores of 38 and 58 not out.
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