Dhoni climbs to second spot in ODI ratings

India's progress as a one-day side was further underlined when the latest ICC ratings for one-day teams was released. Ranked eighth a year back, India have leapfrogged to third place

Cricinfo staff

16-Apr-2006

India's progress as a one-day side was further underlined when the latest ICC ratings for one-day teams was released. Ranked eighth a year back, India have leapfrogged to third place, behind Australia and South Africa. One of the architects of their recent successes, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, has moved up second place in the rankings for top batsmen, with only Ricky Ponting having a higher rating.

India have won three of their last four ODI series emphatically, in the process winning 17 out of 22 matches. The winning spree has helped them overtake New Zealand and Pakistan, and get them to within three points of South Africa.

ICC ODI rankings
Rank	Team	Rating
1	Australia	132
2	South Africa	119
3	India	116
4	Pakistan	114
5	New Zealand	113
6	Sri Lanka	105
7	England	103
8	West Indies	89
9	Zimbabwe	42
10	Bangladesh	24

Their most recent series win was against England, and Dhoni's performances - 177 runs at 59 - helped him move up from fifth to second spot. The only bright spot for England throughout the series was Kevin Pietersen's consistent displays, and he has been rewarded with an entry into the top ten: at seventh place, he is up eight spots from his position when the series began.

ICC ratings for batsmen
Rank	Batsman	Points	Average
1	Ricky Ponting	805	42.74
2	Mahendra Singh Dhoni	798	54.58
3	Adam Gilchrist	793	36.27
4	Andrew Symonds	761	38.64
5	Graeme Smith	759	39.87

Among the bowlers, Harbhajan Singh had plenty to celebrate, moving up six places to number seven.

ICC ratings for bowlers
Rank	Bowler	Points	Average
1	Shaun Pollock	858	24.29
2	Glenn McGrath	768	22.43
3	Shane Bond	762	18.63
4	Irfan Pathan	759	24.15
5	Daniel Vettori	750	33.58

Click here for the full ICC rankings.