The International Cricket Council (ICC) released its latest rankings on Tuesday, December 23. Team India's all-rounder Deepti Sharma has managed to achieve the number one position for the first time in her career. Deepti Sharma has topped the ICC T20 bowling rankings. However, in the latest rankings, Team India's star opener Smriti Mandhana has suffered a setback. She has lost her number one position as the top-ranked ODI batter. South Africa captain Laura Wolvaardt recently snatched the top spot from Smriti Mandhana with a brilliant performance against Ireland. Laura Wolvaardt has also achieved the number one ranking for the first time in her career.
Although 28-year-old Deepti took only one wicket in the first T20 against Sri Lanka, this performance helped her gain 5 rating points and surpass Australia's Annabel Sutherland to claim the number one spot. Deepti now has 737 rating points, while Annabel is in second place with 736 points.
India's Arundhati Reddy (climbing five places to 36th) also gained ground in the T20I bowlers' rankings after the Sri Lanka match, while star batter Jemimah Rodrigues jumped five places to ninth in the latest list of T20I batters.
Rodrigues won the Player of the Match award for her unbeaten half-century against Sri Lanka and entered the top 10 list of T20I batters, where she joins fellow Indian players Smriti Mandhana (third) and Shafali Verma (10th). Smriti Mandhana has slipped to the second position in the ODI rankings. Laura Wolvaardt has reclaimed the top spot thanks to a magnificent century in the final match of South Africa's three-match ODI series against Ireland at home. Wolvaardt scored centuries in the last two matches against Ireland, and the Proteas won the series 3-0. The consistent South African captain achieved a new career-high rating and climbed one place to overtake Mandhana and reach the top spot.
