Dubai: Mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy has ascended to the number one position in the ICC T20 Bowlers’ Rankings for the first time in his career, becoming only the third Indian to reach this milestone. The 34-year-old matched the achievements of fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah and leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi by rising three spots after impressive performances of 1/4 against the UAE and 1/24 against Pakistan. Chakaravarthy, who previously ranked second in February 2025, has overtaken New Zealand’s Jacob Duffy, who held the top spot since March.
The ICC stated, “India spinner Varun Chakaravarthy has been rewarded for his consistent form in 2025 by becoming the No.1 ranked bowler on the latest ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings.” Additionally, left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav made a notable jump, moving up 16 places to 23rd, while spin all-rounder Axar Patel rose one position to 12th. Bumrah also improved his ranking, climbing four spots to 40th. In the all-rounders’ rankings, Hardik Pandya retains the top position, while Abhishek Sharma has advanced four places to 14th. Abhishek’s explosive innings of 30 off 16 balls against the UAE and 31 off 13 against Pakistan have propelled him to a career-high 884 rating points.
His opening partner Shubman Gill has moved up four places to 39th. However, Tilak Varma and captain Suryakumar Yadav have experienced declines in the rankings, with Tilak dropping two spots to fourth and Suryakumar falling one position to seventh.