Australia players make good ground in latest ICC Women’s ODI Player Rankings

Dubai [UAE], March 26 (ANI): Australia’s strong start to their ongoing white-ball series in Bangladesh has seen a host of their best players make good ground on the latest ICC Women’s ODI Player Rankings, as per the ICC release.

The reigning ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup champions have looked in excellent touch during the opening two matches of the ODI component of the series, with star all-rounder Ashleigh Gardner among the leading wicket-takers and top run-scorers for both sides.

Gardner has 52 runs from the first two matches of the series in Mirpur and that has helped the talented 26-year-old improve five places to 17th on the list for ODI batters, while teammates Annabel Sutherland (up five spots to 38th) and Alana King (up 19 places to 58th) also make some ground.

A trio of Australia stars also catch the eye on the list for ODI bowlers, with veteran pacer Megan Schutt moving up one place to second overall behind England spinner Sophie Ecclestone following two wickets and an economical bowling rate against Bangladesh.

Gardner (jumps two places to fifth) also makes ground on the list for ODI bowlers, while left-arm spinner Sophie Molineux re-enters the rankings at equal 69th following her impressive return to international cricket with a three-wicket haul against Bangladesh.

It’s a similar story on the latest ODI rankings for all-rounders, with Gardner jumping a whopping four places to second behind South Africa veteran Marizanne Kapp and King improving eight spots to 11th following her good start to the series against Bangladesh with both bat and ball.

There’s also some movement on the latest T20I rankings following the first three matches of England’s ongoing series against New Zealand away from home.

England lead the five-match series 2-1, with skipper Heather Knight and fellow right-hander Maia Bouchier leading the way as the two leading run-scorers so far during the first three games.

Knight moves up five places to 23rd on the latest rankings for T20I batters and Bouchier improves from outside the top 100 to 53rd, while New Zealand all-rounder Amelia Kerr is the biggest eye-catcher as she moves up three places and obtains a new career-high rating at 11th overall behind Australia’s Beth Mooney.

A trio of England bowlers make ground on the updated list for T20I bowlers, with spinner Sarah Glenn the most notable as the right-armer improves two places to equal second overall behind teammate Ecclestone.

Right-arm spinner Charlotte Dean (up eight places to 11th) and pacer Lauren Bell (up 15 spots to 18th) also make some ground in this category.