The ICC World Cup is coming up, and with it comes the top player list in the world. The rankings are based on how well a player performs during a specific period. It is important to know how these rankings work so that you can play your best when the time comes. Here is a quick overview of how the current top 10 players list operates: The first phase of the rankings starts four months before the World Cup and continues through April 30, one day after the final match of the World Cup.
Points are awarded for results throughout this period, and the player with the most points at the end of this phase is declared as No 1 in ICC World Ranking system. The second phase starts on May 1 and ends on April 30 again, three weeks before the next World Cup. Points continue to be awarded for performances until June 30, whereupon No 2 is crowned if someone has more points than anyone else in that period. If not, then No 3 becomes new No 2 and so on until someone wins by breaking through everyone else’s points number threshold and becoming the new top-ranked player in the world ranking system. Therefore, no player can hold onto their spot continuously because they will be challenged every two months by other players who have also performed well and earned more points than them during those periods. Let’s take a look at all ten top-ranked players right now:
1) Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli is currently the No 1 player in the world and has been for the past two years. The Indian captain has been at the top of his game since his international debut back in 2009 and has been particularly strong in the last two years. During that time, he has twice won the World Cup and has sustained a consistent level of excellence that has placed him at the top of the game.
He has a great record in the Indian Premier League and has led the Mumbai Indians to two titles since he took over the captaincy in 2014. Virat Kohli’s ranking is the highest it has ever been, and it seems that the 31-year-old has no intention of relinquishing his position in the near future. Even though there are other strong batsmen in the game at the moment, Kohli will be hard to beat because he has proven himself as one of the best over the last decade.
2) Steve Smith
Steve Smith is the second-ranked player in the world but is only one point behind No 1 Virat Kohli. The Australian captain has been the undisputed leader in his country’s cricket circle for a long time now, and his commitment to the game has earned him a number of accolades.
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His performances in the last two World Cups have been brilliant, and he has scored a total of 616 runs in the competition, which is the second highest total in the history of the tournament. Smith is another batsman with a great record in the Indian Premier League and has led the Rising Pune Supergiants to two titles since he took over the captaincy in 2015. Because he has been in the top two for so long, it is likely that Smith will relinquish his position at some point in the future. When he does, he will have a good chance of regaining the No 1 ranking in the world once again.
3) Kane Williamson
The third-ranked player in the world, Kane Williamson, is from New Zealand. Williamson has been one of the most consistent batsmen in the world for a number of years now,
and his consistency has seen him earn a number of national awards as well. He has played 30 one-day internationals for New Zealand,
and his average of 50.02 is the second highest in their history.
Williamson has also played 61 Test matches for his country, and his overall average of 53.17 is the highest in the history of Test cricket. The 33-year-old has been a part of the top 10 players list for the past four years and has been ranked as high as fourth in the world in the past. Unfortunately, his performances in recent times have not been as good, which could mean that he is on his way out of the top 10 players ranking.
4) Shikhar Dhawan
The fourth-ranked player in the world is the Indian all-rounder Shikhar Dhawan. He burst onto the world stage
with a match-winning performance in the 2015 World Cup
and has since been consistently in the top 10. He has played 112 one-day internationals for his country,
and his overall average of 31.53 is the third highest in their history. Dhawan also has a good record in Test cricket, scoring 663 runs in his 14 matches,
which is the fourth most in the history of the format. The 29-year-old has consistently been in the top 10 players list for the past three years, ranking as high as second.
However, the hopes of reaching the top position are probably gone because his recent performances haven’t been so good.
5) Joe Root
Joe Root is the No 5 ranked player in the world and is another batsman from England. He has only played 25 one-day internationals for his country,
but his average of 38.52 is the third highest in their history.
Root has also played only 18 Test matches for England,
and his overall average of 56.57 is the highest in their history.
The 24-year-old was in the top 10 players list last year as well,
but has slipped down the list in the last few months. His recent performances haven’t been great,
which could mean that the top five in the world ranking is a long shot for him.
The good thing is that he has a chance to regain his position in the world players ranking
with strong performances in the World Cup.
6) David Warner
The Australian all-rounder David Warner is the sixth-ranked player in the world. He has played 116 one-day internationals for his country, and his overall average of 35.62 is the third lowest in the history of the format. He also has a good record in Test cricket, scoring 836 runs in his 14 matches.
Warner has been in the top 10 players list for the past three years, and has slipped down the list in recent months. His recent performances haven’t been so good, which means that he has a good chance of regaining his position in the world players ranking with strong performances in the World Cup.
7) Kane Wilson
Indian all-rounder Kane Wilson is the seventh-ranked player in the world. He has played 114 one-day internationals for his country,
and his overall average of 26.85 is the second lowest in the history of the format.
He also has a good record in Test cricket, scoring 595 runs in his 14 matches. Wilson has been in the top 10 players list for the past four years,
but has slipped down the list in the last few months. His recent performances haven’t been so good,
which means that he has a good chance of regaining his position in the world players ranking
with strong performances in the World Cup.
8) Dinesh Karthik
The Indian all-rounder Dinesh Karthik is the eighth-ranked player in the world. He has played 105 one-day internationals for his country,
and his overall average of 24.11 is the third lowest in the history of the format. Karthik also has a good record in Test cricket, scoring 541 runs in his 14 matches. Karthik has been in the top 10 players list for the past four years,
but has fallen down the list in recent months. His recent performances haven’t been so good,
which means that he has a good chance of regaining his position in the world players ranking
with strong performances in the World Cup.
9) Jason Roy (BPL Only)
The eighth-ranked player in the world is the Bangladeshi batsman Jason Roy,
who has only played 30 one-day internationals for his country.
Roy has played a total of 164 one-day internationals for his country,
and his overall average of 42.86 is the seventh lowest in their history.
Also, Roy also has a good record in Test cricket, scoring 602 runs in his 14 matches.
Also, Roy has been in the top 10 players list for the past two years,
but has fallen down the list in recent months.
His recent performances haven’t been so good, which means
that he has a good chance of regaining his position in the world players ranking
with strong performances in the World Cup.
10) Bhuvneshwar Kumar (BPL Only)
The tenth-ranked player in the world is the Indian all-rounder Bhuvneshwar Kumar,
who has only played 29 one-day internationals for his country. Kumar has a good record in Test cricket, scoring 508 runs in his 14 matches.
