Hardik Pandya returned to the top position in the latest ICC Men’s T20I All-rounders rankings. He contributed 59 runs in three innings and took two wickets in India’s recent 3-1 T20I series victory over South Africa.
Pandya climbed up two spots with 244 rating points to replace Liam Livingstone, who slid to third place, and has 230 rating points. Nepal’s Dipendra Airee, is at the second position with 231 points.
Meanwhile, Tilak Varma was sensational to emerge as the best batter in the India-South Africa T20I series. He slammed 280 runs at a strike rate of 198.58, while scoring back-to-back centuries. He jumped 69 spots to make an entry into the top 10 batters list for the first time.
Varma is now at the third place with 806 points, while skipper Suryakumar Yadav descended one spot to take the fourth position.
Sanju Samson’s rise was also significant, as he rose 17 spots to 22nd place among the batters. The talented keeper-batter scored 216 runs at a strike rate of 194.59, with two centuries in the series. Arshdeep Singh, who took eight wickets in the series, gained three spots to take ninth position in the bowler’s rankings.
Hardik Pandya to play domestic cricket after six years
Hardik Pandya is set to return to domestic cricket for the first time after the 2018-19 season. His last appearance for Baroda came in a Ranji Trophy game against Mumbai in December 2018. He took seven wickets and scored 73 runs in the game.
Pandya has been added to Baroda’s squad for Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, which begins on November 23. Interestingly, his last appearance in SMAT came way back in January 2016, when he was still an uncapped player.
Hardik’s brother Krunal Pandya will continue to lead the side in the tournament. The last season of SMAT witnessed Krunal-led Baroda emerging as a runner-up, after losing by 20 runs against Punjab.
Although, Hardik Pandya has been retained by Mumbai Indians, Krunal was released by Lucknow Super Giants ahead of the IPL 2025 auction. It will be interesting to see if Krunal can perform well in Baroda’s first game against Gujarat on Saturday, ahead of the auction beginning on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Sanju Samson has been named as the captain of the Kerala state team for SMAT 2024-25. He last played for the side in a Ranji Trophy game against Karnataka last month. He was among the six retentions by the Rajasthan Royals, and will continue to lead the side in IPL 2025.
