Indian off-spinner Deepti Sharma jumped four places to reach second position in the latest ICC’s Women’s T20I Player Rankings. She earned this career-best ranking after taking 14 wickets during India’s successful Women’s Asia Cup campaign in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
India defeated Sri Lanka by 72 runs in the final at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium to secure their record-extending eighth continental title. Sharma took three wickets for 19 runs in the final match.
How Deepti Sharma Climbed the Rankings
Sharma finished the Asia Cup tournament as the overall leading wicket-taker with 14 wickets. Her return to second place matches her previous career-high ranking. She last held the second position in December 2024. In an earlier ranking update on 8 July 2025, she also climbed to second place after taking three wickets against England at The Oval.
A title-winning Women’s Asia Cup campaign brings a rankings boost for two of India’s standout performers 📈🏆
More from the latest ICC Women’s Player Rankings update 👉 https://t.co/RDZAeE47UB pic.twitter.com/yfv272hsjg
— ICC (@ICC) September 15, 2026
During that July 2025 match, England clinched a narrow five-run victory, while India maintained a 2-1 series lead. At that time, Sharma trailed top-ranked bowler Sadia Iqbal of Pakistan by just eight rating points.
India Dominates Top Two Bowling Spots
Sharma’s climb to second place means Indian bowlers now occupy the top two positions in the world rankings. Fellow Indian spinner Sree Charani holds the number one spot directly above Sharma. Charani retained her top spot after delivering a dominant performance in the Asia Cup final. The left-arm spinner took four wickets for 20 runs against Sri Lanka and finished the tournament with 12 wickets total.
Charani’s performance in Dubai pushed her past the 800-point barrier for the first time. She reached a career-best 804 rating points. This total marks the highest rating points ever achieved by an Indian player in ICC batting or bowling rankings. Charani broke the previous national record of 780 rating points, which former Indian captain Mithali Raj set in 2011.
Charani also became the first Indian bowler in history to cross the 800-point mark. She joined an elite group that includes Australia’s Megan Schutt and England’s Sophie Ecclestone. Charani now sits just two rating points behind Megan Schutt’s all-time women’s T20I record of 806 points, set in November 2018.
Shafali Verma and Smriti Mandhana Rise in Batting Rankings
Indian batters achieved major gains following the Asia Cup victory. Opening batter Shafali Verma jumped from seventh to sixth place in the T20I batting rankings. Verma finished as the leading run-scorer in the Asia Cup with 236 runs at an average of 47.20. She scored 64 runs in the semi-final and 68 runs in the final.
Verma reached 741 rating points, marking her highest rating total since October 2021. She also climbed five places in the T20I all-rounder rankings to reach 15th position with a career-best 221 rating points. Verma now trails teammate Smriti Mandhana by four rating points. Mandhana holds fifth place in the batting rankings with 745 rating points after scoring 213 runs across five innings in Dubai.
In earlier T20I updates from July 2025, Indian middle-order batter Jemimah Rodrigues moved up two places to 12th position after scoring 63 runs against England at Bristol. In the same match, Indian batter Amanjot Kaur scored an unbeaten 63 runs to rise to 69th position.
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