Kishan and Head rise to top of ICC batting rankings

By Karan Malhotra — 1 July 2026 — 3 min read

Ishan Kishan has ascended to the top of the ICC Men’s T20I Batting Rankings, displacing his teammate Abhishek Sharma. This marks a significant achievement for Kishan, making him the fourth Indian batter to reach the number one spot in T20Is, joining an exclusive group that includes Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav. Kishan’s rise follows his consistent performances, notably during the T20 World Cup earlier this year where he accumulated 317 runs at a strike rate close to 200, including a Player of the Match effort against Pakistan in Colombo. He now holds 876 rating points, while Sharma, whose reign lasted nearly 12 months, is now in second place with 869 points.

In the ICC Men’s Test Batting Rankings, Australia batter Travis Head has claimed the top position. This comes after disappointing performances from England‘s Joe Root and Harry Brook in the third Test against New Zealand. Head is the first Australian to lead the Test Batting Rankings since Marnus Labuschagne in June 2023. Head currently has 853 rating points, just one point ahead of Brook, who has dropped to second. Root, who had recently begun his 12th stint at the top, has slipped to third place.

Changes in Test Rankings

The recent weekly update to the rankings also reflects other notable movements in Test cricket. New Zealand‘s Daryl Mitchell, Devon Conway, and Tom Latham saw significant gains after their team secured a 2-1 series victory in the ICC World Test Championship. Mitchell moved up five places to 11th, Conway advanced 14 places to 15th, and Latham climbed 12 places to 31st. England opener Ben Duckett‘s first innings century helped him move from 17th to 14th position.

In the bowling department, Jasprit Bumrah has regained the top spot in the ICC Men’s Test Bowling Rankings after Matt Henry missed a match due to injury. Henry had held the top position for only one week. Nathan Smith, who was the leading wicket-taker in the series, moved up eight places to 38th, while William O’Rourke advanced five places to 27th. England captain Ben Stokes concluded his Test career as the 34th-ranked bowler and the third-ranked all-rounder, also holding the 54th position in the Test batting rankings.

Other movements in the Test rankings include Sri Lanka’s Dhananjay de Silva, who moved up six places to 21st in batting, and West Indies’ Roston Chase, who climbed 14 places to 79th. Among bowlers, West Indies’ Shamar Joseph moved up nine places to 14th, and Kemar Roach gained four places to 17th. Zimbabwe’s Blessing Muzarabani also advanced six places to 19th.

T20I Ranking Shifts

The ICC Men’s T20I Batting Rankings also saw changes beyond Kishan’s ascent. Pakistan’s Sahibzada Farhan is currently ranked third with 848 points. In the T20I bowling charts, Varun Chakravarthy and Jasprit Bumrah each dropped one spot to third and sixth respectively, while Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan continues to lead.

The recent series between India and Ireland, which India lost 2-0, played a role in the T20I ranking adjustments. Ireland‘s Lorean Tucker, who scored a half-century in the first match against India, moved up four places to 77th. His teammates Harry Tector inched up one place to 79th, and Ross Adair advanced six slots to 84th. Seam bowler Matthew Humphreys also moved up one place to 25th after taking four wickets in the series.

In the Test batting rankings, India captain Shubman Gill has moved up to sixth, while Yashasvi Jaiswal has slipped to ninth. Rishabh Pant remains India’s highest-ranked batter outside the top 10 at 13th.