Dubai, Jan 9 .New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson on Monday joined his Indian counterpart Virat Kohli to feature in the top five of the International Cricket Council (ICC) rankings across all three formats of the game. Williamson, who was already placed fifth in the One-Day International (ODI) rankings, besides occupying the fourth spot in the ICC Test rankings, jumped two places to move to the fourth spot in the ICC T20 rankings for batsmen, according to an ICC release.
Kohli is the only other batsman in the world who presently features in the top five of all three formats. He is the number-one ranked batsman in T20Is, second-ranked in ODIs and Tests. Interestingly, both Kohli and Williamson captained their respective sides in the ICC Under-19 World Cup 2008 in Malaysia. India won the tournament when it defeated South Africa by 12 runs (DLS method).
Apart from Williamson, all-rounder Colin Munro has also made an impact on the latest T20I rankings. The left-hander smashed a 54-ball 101 in the second match against Bangladesh, which has helped him jump 20 places to 19th. In the T20I bowling table, the biggest mover is Bangladesh's Mustafizur Rahman, who won the ICC Emerging Cricketer of the Year award.
The left-armer has leaped 10 places to 10th in the latest rankings. In doing so, he has also become Bangladesh's highest-ranked bowler, leapfrogging left-arm spinner Shakib Al Hasan who is 11th after rising three places in the list led by South Africa's Imran Tahir and followed by India's Jasprit Bumrah at second position.
Reacting to the news, Mustafizur said: "Rankings are an important indicator of consistency in performance and I am very happy and inspired to see myself in the top ten for the first time."
Meanwhile, New Zealand has retained its status as the number-one ranked T20I side. For its 3-0 success against Bangladesh, it has earned one point which has lifted it to 129 points. The Kiwis are followed by India and South Africa at second and third spots respectively.