Pakistan seventh in ICC women’s rankings

Innovative system incorporates results in all three formats of the game

KARACHI: Pakistan were ranked seventh as the International Cricket Council (ICC) launched the official ICC Women’s Team Rankings, which incorporate results in all three formats of the game into one rankings system, on Thursday.

Australia are at the top, courtesy of their success in the 2013 ICC Women’s World Cup in India and the 2014 ICC Women’s World T20 in Bangladesh. They also lead the ICC Women’s Championship, which is the qualifying tournament for the 2017 ICC Women’s World Cup.

Meanwhile, England are ranked second in the 10-team table — 10 points behind Australia — followed by New Zealand (109), India (105), West Indies (99), South Africa (92), Pakistan (81), Sri Lanka (74), Bangladesh (57) and Ireland (26). Teams will be added to the table as and when they reach the required standard.

The innovative system awards points equally for results in Tests, ODIs and T20Is. This means there will be ranking points to play for in every international match, while the volume of matches will ensure the table is a credible reflection of overall performance.

The rankings table is based on results between three and four years, but with the first two years being weighted at only 50%.

“This is a big step in the direction of getting women’s cricket at par with men’s cricket,” said Pakistan captain Sana Mir. “Men’s rankings have established their place in cricket and are widely followed. I am sure this initiative will further boost the efforts of the ICC and the members, as women’s cricket will now be taken more seriously than ever before.”

Sana, placed 34th in the batting rankings and 15th in the bowling in ODIs, added, “Every team wants to be top of the pedestal. These official rankings for women’s cricket provide each side a benchmark to monitor its progress and plan how to either retain top spot or gain ground on higher-ranked sides.”

The ICC Women’s Team Rankings will be updated at the end of each series.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 2^nd, 2015.

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