India’s Shubman Gill has officially climbed to the top of the ICC ODI batters’ rankings, overtaking Pakistan’s Babar Azam in the latest update released on Wednesday. Gill now holds 796 rating points, while Babar, who previously dominated the rankings, has slipped to second place with 773 points.
Gill’s rise to the No. 1 spot comes on the back of a stellar performance in the recently concluded ODI series against England, where he scored a century and two half-centuries. His consistency was crucial in India’s 3-0 series win and helped him leapfrog Babar in the rankings.
The 24-year-old’s feat is historic in more ways than one. By scoring fifty-plus in all three matches of the series, he became only the seventh Indian batter to achieve this in a three-match bilateral ODI series. Notably, he is also the first Indian to do so against England.
Gill’s ODI career continues to be remarkable. With seven centuries in his first 50 matches, he now holds the record for the most hundreds by an Indian batter at this stage of their career.
With India kickstarting its ICC Champions Trophy campaign against Bangladesh in Dubai on Thursday, India will hope its new No. 1 continues to deliver on the big stage.
