ICC rankings: Babar retains top position, Imam climbs to 3rd spot in ODIs

Pakistan's skipper Babar Azam has retained his first position in the updated ICC ODI rankings owing to a string of impressive performances against Australia. On the other hand, Imam-ul-Haq, the highest run-scorer in the Australia series with 298 runs at a surreal average of 149, jumped up seven places to become the third-ranked ODI batsman. Apart from these two, the Australian batter Travis Head, who amassed 190 runs at a healthy average of 63.33, has climbed five spots up to the 34th position. 

However, the Australian captain Aaron Finch has moved three places down to number 10 because of his horrendous returns in the Pakistan series.  

The experienced Kiwi batsman Tom Latham has moved up three spots to number 25 after his magnificent knock of 140 against the Netherlands. 

Talking about the bowlers, the star Pakistan seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi has gained eight spots to finish at the no. 7 position after picking six wickets from 2 ODIs against the Aussies. Apart from Shaheen, the Dutch left-arm pacer Fred Klaassen, who had five dismissals to his name at an impressive bowling average of 24.20 against the Kiwis, has gained a massive improvement of 23 spots to no. 55. Apart from these two players, the Black Caps leg spinner Ish Sodhi has also climbed five places to no. 37. 

However, Adam Zampa, despite having a decent series against Pakistan, has moved down to five spots as he finishes at no. 14. There is are no notable change in the rounders rankings, with Colin de Grandhomme moving up one rank to no. 6. 

Talking about the batters' rankings in Tests, the Proteas captain Dean Elgar has climbed three spots to no. 13, while Mahmudul Hasan Joy, who impressed everyone with his gritty century in the Durban Test, has had a massive gain of 37 places to no. 66. In the bowling department, Kagiso Rabada, who missed the Bangladesh tests because of IPL commitment, has been demoted one spot down to no. 4. 

The Proteas left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj, who played a crucial role in the home side's victory against the Tigers in Durban, has improved two spots as he finishes at no. 28. The Bangladeshi spinner Mehidy Hasan has also climbed four places to no. 31 because of his figures of 3/94 and 3/85 in the exact match. 

However, all rounders' rankings remain unchanged as Ravindra Jadeja has retained his top spot, followed by Ravichandran Ashwin at no. 2 and Jason Holder at no. 3.