South Africa batter Laura Wolvaardt has re-claimed the top spot for ODI batters, surpassing India skipper Smriti Mandhana in the latest ICC Women’s ODI rankings update. The Wolvaardt move to the top is the headline change in the update, and it restores Wolvaardt to a position she has held before. A change at the top of a batting list is a clear marker in a rankings update, because it reflects recent form across a set of matches rather than a single innings.
The rankings update is tied to the India Women against Zimbabwe Women series, and it includes gains for players from both sides. Harmanpreet Kaur climbed two places to eighth among ODI batters, which gives India a second batter in the top ten. A move of two places can be the result of a strong series with the bat, and it also shows how close the points are in the middle of the top ten.
Deepti Sharma moved up four spots to 23rd in batting in the same update. Deepti also moved up two rungs to fourth among ODI all-rounders, and she moved up one place to eighth among ODI bowlers. A player who climbs in three lists at once has made a broad contribution, because batting, bowling and all-rounder lists each measure a different part of the game. The all-rounder list in particular rewards players who contribute in both disciplines.
Kranti Gaud and Pratika Rawal also improved in bowling and batting respectively in the update. The gains for Gaud and Rawal add to the India picture in the rankings, and they follow the same series that produced the gains for Harmanpreet and Deepti. A series can move several players at once when a team wins matches and individual players make scores or take wickets, and that pattern is visible in this update.
Wolvaardt top spot and Mandhana change
The Wolvaardt return to the top spot means that Mandhana moves down from the position she held before the update. Rankings move in both directions, and a player who drops from first place can still be close to the top in points. The update does not change past results, and it does not change the record of either player. It records the latest form for Wolvaardt, and it will change again after the next set of ODI matches.
For South Africa, the Wolvaardt top spot is a team result as well as an individual result, because a top ranked batter gives a side a clear anchor in the batting order. For India, the Mandhana change is part of a wider update that also includes gains for Harmanpreet, Deepti, Gaud and Rawal. A rankings update rarely moves only one player, and the India gains show that the series against Zimbabwe has had an effect beyond the match results.
Wolvaardt rankings context and India gains
Harmanpreet Kaur is now eighth among ODI batters after climbing two places, and that move puts her in the top ten with Mandhana. Deepti Sharma is 23rd among ODI batters after moving up four spots, fourth among ODI all-rounders after moving up two rungs, and eighth among ODI bowlers after moving up one place. Those three moves together give a full view of Deepti’s place in the game, and they show why all-rounder lists matter for players who do more than one job.
Kranti Gaud improved in bowling, and Pratika Rawal improved in batting, although the update as reported does not give a new rank for either player. The gains still matter, because a move in the right direction can set up a larger move after the next series. For young players, a first move in the rankings can be a sign that their recent work is being recorded in the same way as the work of more established players.
Wolvaardt Zimbabwe gains in the update
Zimbabwe players also gained in the batter rankings in the update. Modester Mupachikwa, Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano and Beloved Biza all gained, and those gains follow the same India Women against Zimbabwe Women series. A gain for a batter from a touring side can be hard to earn, because the team has lost matches in the series, but individual scores still count in the rankings. Mupachikwa, Mugeri-Tiripano and Biza have each made scores in the series, and the update records that work.
The update as a whole tells a simple story. Wolvaardt is back at the top among ODI batters, Mandhana is second after the change, Harmanpreet is eighth after climbing two places, and Deepti has climbed in batting, all-rounder and bowling lists. Gaud and Rawal have improved, and the Zimbabwe batters Mupachikwa, Mugeri-Tiripano and Biza have also gained. The next ODI matches will test whether those moves hold.