ICC T20I rankings: KL Rahul retains 2nd spot, Ashton Agar in top five

KL Rahul (IANS)

Dubai, Feb 27: K.L. Rahul retained his second spot in the ICC T20I rankings which also saw Australia's left-arm spinner Ashton Agar shoot up six places to No.4.

In-form Rahul moved to second spot in the rankings earlier this month riding his splendid performances in the T20I and ODI series in New Zealand. India won the T20I series 5-0 but lost the subsequent ODIs 0-3.

Rahul has 823 points and is behind Pakistan's Babar Azam who is at the top of the chart with 879 points. India captain Virat Kohli too retained his position in the rankings at 10th position with 673 points.

Meanwhile, Agar, who was in splendid form against South Africa picking up five wickets in the first games including a hat-trick, made heavy inroads while David Warner, Steve Smith and Mitchell Star also made substantial gains following the latest update.

Agar followed that up with three scalps in the third and final T20I as Australia secured a series victory.

Agar's haul of eight wickets propelled him six spots in the rankings, from No.10 to 4, while his teammate, wrist-spinner Adam Zampa, jumped one spot to No.3 after finishing with five scalps for the series. Trailing closely at their heels was South Africa's Tabraiz Shamsi at No.5 after a three-spot rise.

Warner, who finished with 128 runs from three innings, including two fifties, continued his rise up the batting rankings to No.18 from 25. His opening partner and Australia captain Aaron Finch remained the top-ranked batsman from the country, bridging the gap between him and Rahul.

Smith's T20I game has been on the rise since his return from suspension in 2018. In six innings since then, he has scored 250 runs at an average of 83.33 while striking at 147.92. He was among the runs in the series against South Africa as well, scoring 104 at a strike rate of 142.46 - a performance that helped him climb 25 spots to No.53 in the rankings.