Babar Azam out of top 10 in ICC T20I rankings after eight years

Pakistan’s batting icon Babar Azam has fallen out of the top 10 for the first time in eight years, slipping three spots to 12th place. The former captain’s dip comes amid his absence from international T20s and modest domestic form, marking a symbolic shift in the country’s cricketing landscape.

Babar’s last T20I appearance came in January, where he managed three consecutive fifties against South Africa, only to falter with single-digit scores against West Indies. Despite scoring 288 runs at an average of 36.00 in the recent Pakistan Super League (PSL), his strike rate of 128.57 did little to secure his spot in the revamped national squad under new skipper Agha Salman.

Teammates Mohammad Rizwan and Fakhar Zaman also experienced ranking slumps. Rizwan is now at 13th, just behind Babar, while Fakhar plummeted 10 places to 87th.

However, Pakistan’s younger guns seem to be seizing the moment. The team’s 3-0 series whitewash over Bangladesh has propelled several fresh faces up the rankings. Mohammad Haris made a jaw-dropping jump of 210 places to 30th, following his blistering century, the second-fastest by a Pakistani in T20Is. Rising talent Hasan Nawaz climbed 57 spots to 45th, while Saim Ayub and Agha Salman also registered notable improvements.

In bowling, Abbas Afridi moved up 18 places to 19th, solidifying his presence as a fast-rising threat. Vice-captain Shadab Khan and Abrar Ahmed both landed at 59th after impressive gains, though Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, and Naseem Shah saw declines.

Globally, New Zealand’s Jacob Duffy tops the bowling charts, with West Indies’ Akeal Hosein and India’s Varun Chakaravarthy rounding off the top three.