Shafali, Renuka rise; Deepti holds top spot
Swashbuckling India opener Shafali Verma has climbed to sixth place in the latest ICC Women’s T20I Player Rankings following a string of impressive half-centuries. 21-year-old, a former top-ranked batter, has moved up four places after scores of 69 not out off 34 balls in the second T20I against Sri Lanka, followed by unbeaten knocks of 79 off 42 deliveries and 79 off 46 balls in the third and fourth matches in Thiruvananthapuram.
Vice-captain Smriti Madhana, who ended her lean patch with a fluent 80 in the fourth T20I, retained her third position in the rankings, while Jemimah Rodrigues slipped one place to 10th. Seasoned India all-rounder Deepti Sharma continues her reign at the top in the bowlers’ list with compatriot Renuka Singh Thakur joining her in the top 10.
Thakur, who has held a career-high third position in the bowling rankings, gained eight places to reach joint-sixth position following a match-winning haul of four for 21 in the third match that India won by eight wickets to seal the series. India’s left-arm spinners Shree Charani and Vaishnavi Sharma have also progressed in the latest weekly rankings update with the home side taking a 4-0 lead in the five-match series.
Charani has moved up 17 places to 52nd in the bowling rankings while Vaishnavi Sharma has galloped 390 places to reach 124th position in her first international series as the 50-over world champions weigh their options in preparation for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 to be held in England and Wales from June 12 to July 5.
For Sri Lanka, left-handed opener Hasini Perera has advanced 114 places to 71st position among batters after scoring 22, 25 and 33 in the three matches played this past week and Kavisha Dilhari has climbed up three places to 79th.
