Pakistan

Official! Babar Azam dethrones Kohli’s 1258 days of supremacy

by
Zainab Shafiq
April 14, 2021

Table of Contents

Babar Azam surpasses Virat Kohli to become No. 1 ODI batsman

Pakistan’s skipper, Babar Azam has dethroned India’s skipper, Virat Kohli, to become the ranked No. 1 ODI batsman. The International Cricket Council (ICC) has taken so long to update the ranking as it was officially on-screened on Wednesday.

Babar’s supercilious milestone came on having a wonderful three-match ODI series against South Africa. He scored 228 at an average of 78 as the men in green won the series by 2-1.

As of now, Babar has 865 points which slid Kohli down on the second spot with 857 points. Undoubtedly, Kohli had an appealing ODI series versus England recently.

Despite the fact that his struggle for an ODI century continues yet, he slammed 129 runs in three matches at an average of 43. Hunting for a ton in the format might be possible why Kohli’s 1258 days of supremacy have come to an end.

Babar Azam surpasses Virat Kohli to become No. 1 ODI batsman

Babar Azam ??

The Pakistan captain has overtaken Virat Kohli to become the No.1 batsman in the latest @MRFWorldwide ICC men's ODI rankings ? pic.twitter.com/krxoKRDsSY

— ICC (@ICC) April 14, 2021

Notably, Babar Azam is now only the fourth Pakistani to appear in the top-ranked ODI position. Before him, Zaheer Abbas, Javed Miandad, and Mohammad Yousuf have topped the chart sequentially.

READ Babar Azam's reaction after achieving No.1 ICC ODI ranking here: https://t.co/4sS4Qn2UAz pic.twitter.com/5u1F6XXqwu

— PCB Media (@TheRealPCBMedia) April 14, 2021

Other than this, Fakhar Zaman, having an explosive series along with Babar, has risen to the seventh position in MRF ODI rankings for the batsmen. Fakhar now has 778 points jumping five rankings up.

A good update for ??

Fakhar Zaman, following a brilliant series against South Africa, has surged five places to joint No.7 in the latest @MRFWorldwide ICC men’s ODI rankings for batsmen ? pic.twitter.com/WzSNehzdY3

— ICC (@ICC) April 14, 2021

It is to be noted that Fakhar was dropped from the second T20I amidst the slight injury. The PCB replaced him with Sharjeel Khan who has made a comeback in the national team following a tainted past.

Fakhar is all set to feature in the third ODI as the reports suggest his inclusion once again.