ICC ODI rankings: Harmanpreet Kaur rises to 20th, Mithali Raj stays 2nd

Dubai: India’s Harmanpreet Kaur gained a spot to be in 20th position while her skipper Mithali Raj retained her second place in the latest women’s ODI batter rankings released on Tuesday. Kaur scored a 66-ball 63 in the fifth and final ODI against New Zealand recently to roar back into form, the knock helping India to avoid a whitewash at the hands of the home team. Raj and star opener Smriti Mandhana, who scored 73 in the final ODI, maintained their second and eight spots respectively. All-rounder Deepti Sharma also saw her position improve in the bowling charts, gaining one spot up to No 12. She returned with figures of 1/49 in four overs and 2/42 in 10 overs in the fourth and fifth ODIs respectively. She only scored nine runs in the fourth ODI and did not bat in the fifth match, which saw her lose one spot in the all-rounders’ rankings, down to No 5. Veteran pacer Jhulan Goswami continued to be the only Indian in the top 10, as she held on to her fourth spot in the bowlers’ chart. New Zealand’s Amelia Kerr did very well in the final two ODIs of the five-match series against India. In the fourth ODI, which was reduced to a 20-over contest, Kerr scored an unbeaten 68 in only 33 deliveries. In the fifth and final ODI, Kerr scored 68 in 75 balls. Her exploits with the bat have seen her jump up five spots to No.17 in the rankings chart for batters. Kerr also contributed with a few handy overs in the final two matches. In the fourth match, she returned with figures of 3/30 in 3.5 overs as New Zealand successfully defended a score of 191. In the fifth and final ODI, she registered figures of 1/55 in her 10 overs. This has seen her rankings rise up to No.17 in bowlers, a gain of four positions. She has also broken into the top 5 of the all-rounders’ chart, gaining two positions up to No 4. Her form will undoubtedly aid New Zealand as the hosts aim to clinch their second ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup title, beginning 4 March. In other big movements, Amy Satterthwaite dropped down four positions in the batting rankings, down to No.7. She scored a 16-ball 32 in the fourth ODI and 21-ball 12 in the fifth and final contest. Alyssa Healy continued at the top of the batting charts, while her Australian compatriots Jess Jonassen and Ellyse Perry maintained their status as the No.1 ranked bowler and the No.1 ranked all-rounder, respectively.