India's opening batsman Abhishek Sharma has made a significant leap in the newly-released ICC Men's T20I Player Rankings, ascending 38 positions to secure the second place among batters following his outstanding performance in the recent home series against England. Meanwhile, mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy, who was named Player of the Series, narrowly missed claiming the top position.

Abhishek's rise in the rankings can be attributed to his remarkable century in the fifth and final match at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, where he scored a blistering 135 runs off just 54 balls. This innings not only marked the highest individual score by an Indian male player in T20I history but also included the second-fastest T20I century for India, propelling him from 40th to 2nd place in the latest batter rankings.

He concluded the series as the leading run-scorer, amassing 279 runs at an impressive average of 55.80 and a strike rate of 219.68, which included one century and one half-century.

Australian cricketer Travis Head continues to lead the T20I batter rankings, but Abhishek trails him by a mere 26 rating points following his record-setting performance at Wankhede. Three Indian players are now positioned within the top five, with Tilak Varma in third place and captain Suryakumar Yadav dropping to fifth, all within striking distance of Head. Additionally, teammates Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube have also made significant advancements in the T20I batter rankings due to their commendable performances against England.

Varun Chakaravarthy's narrow miss

While Abhishek excelled with the bat during India's 4-1 victory over England, Chakaravarthy shone with the ball, taking 14 wickets across five innings in the series. This impressive display allowed him to rise three places to joint second in the rankings, sharing the position with England's Adil Rashid, who has fallen from the top spot to make way for West Indies spinner Akeal Hosein. Hosein currently holds the number one ranking, with only a two-point lead over Chakaravarthy.

Ravi Bishnoi, another spinner from India, has made significant progress in the rankings, advancing four positions to secure the sixth spot.

The most recent Test rankings reflect a notable rise for several Australian players, which is unsurprising given their remarkable performance in defeating Sri Lanka by an innings and 242 runs in the recent first Test held in Galle.

Stand-in captain Steve Smith ascended three places to reach fifth in the updated Test batter rankings after achieving his 35th Test century. Meanwhile, opener Usman Khawaja surged six places to 11th, bolstered by his highest Test score of 232 during the match.

The rankings for Test bowlers exhibit a similar trend, with veteran spinner Nathan Lyon climbing two spots to sixth overall, and pacer Mitchell Starc also moving up two places to 12th as a result of their performances in Galle.

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