Phil Salt’s outstanding performance as an opener for England has elevated him to the second position in the ICC Men’s T20I batting rankings, marking a career-best rating of 802.
Salt was one of several players from the high-scoring West Indies v England T20I series in the Caribbean to enjoy a jump after the latest update on Wednesday.
The England opener’s scores of 119 and 38 in Trinidad moved him up 18 places, with a career-high rating of 802, 15 rating points clear of Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan in third (787), as per ICC.
Despite Salt’s jump, it is daylight between the rest of the field and Suryakumar Yadav in the top spot, with the India batter still well clear on 887.
Fellow English batter Liam Livingstone also enjoyed a batting rankings jump, moving 27 places to 38th after knocks of 54* and 28 across the same matches. Livingstone’s work also helped in the all-rounder category, moving four spots up to eighth (175). His move meant compatriots Moeen Ali and Shadab Khan of Pakistan shared an equal-ninth spot (173). West Indies claimed the five-match T20I series 3-2, claiming victory in the final match, largely on the back of their bowling, keeping England to just 132 before completing a chase in the final over six wickets down.
Left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein took 2/20 from four overs in the victory, and moved two spots up to fourth (683), overtaking the Sri Lankan pair of Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana (679 and 677 respectively). Gudakesh Motie jumped 75 spots after claiming 3/24 (4) in the same outing, while Reece Topley on the England side has moved into the top 10 bowlers with a 13-spot jump thanks to five wickets across the two matches across the week. Meanwhile the ODI series between New Zealand and Bangladesh, as well as India’s trip to South Africa, has led to a number of minor shuffles.