Smriti Mandhana Tops ICC Women's ODI Batting Rankings

India opener Smriti Mandhana has risen to the top of the International Cricket Council Women's ODI batting rankings, capping a dominant run of form following the recent three-match series against Australia. The update, released on Tuesday in Dubai, placed the 29-year-old left-hander at number one with 790 rating points, edging out South Africa's Laura Wolvaardt, who sits at 782 points.

Mandhana's ascent came after she scored 58 in the first ODI and 31 in the second, contributions that proved sufficient to overtake Wolvaardt despite India losing all three matches in the series, which concluded last week. The series formed part of a multi-format tour where Australia, after dropping two of three T20 internationals at home, swept the ODIs to level the contest. Wolvaardt, the South African captain, has an immediate opportunity to regain the summit during her team's upcoming series against New Zealand in March and April.

Mandhana's achievement builds on an extraordinary 2025, during which she amassed 1,362 runs in ODIs, the most by any woman in a calendar year and the first time a female batter reached 1,000 runs in the format within 12 months. She topped the ODI run charts for both...