Ravi Bishnoi caps meteoric rise by becoming No. 1 ranked T20I bowler in the world

There's a new No. 1-ranked T20I bowler in town and he goes by the name of Ravi Bishnoi. Yes, the 23-year-old India spinner has culminated his rapid ascent by climbing the pinnacle of the ICC rankings for bowler in T20Is. Following his series-winning haul of nine wickets from five games against Australia at an average of 18.22, Bishnoi, with 699 points has displaced Rashid Khan as the No. 1 bowler in the world, in the process, pushing the likes of Wanindu Hasaranga of Sri Lanka, England's Adil Rashid to joint No. 3, followed by SL's Maheesh Theekshana at No.5, shaping a top five dominated solely by spinners.

Bishnoi, who was placed seventh, climbed up six places to reach the ranking summit. This comes on the back of a stunning show against the Aussies, where he registered figures of 3/32, 2/32, 2/29, 1/17 and 1/54. Bishnoi's stocks have been on the up ever since he played the Under-19 World Cup for India in 2022. Bishnoi finished the tournament as the leading wicket-taker with 17 scalps and immediately caught attention as India won the Under-19 trophy.

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Bishnoi then made his India debut later that year, taking part in the Asia Cup campaign, where he snuffed out former Pakistan captain Babar Azam's wicket. In just 21 ODIs, Bishnoi has already grabbed 34 wickets at an average of 17.38 including a best of 4/16 – against the West Indies in August last year at Lauderhill. The ranking comes in the nick of time for Bishnoi, who is among the may youngsters auditioning for next year's T20 World Cup.

Bishnoi could emerge as a strong contender for India's top spinner at the upcoming ICC event. With Yuzvendra Chahal sidelined from the T20I squad, and the management seeking a youthful squad for the World Cup in the West Indies and USA, Bishnoi could provide a promising solution. Besides Bishnoi, another India spinner, primed to play the World Cup, Axar Patel too has jumped nine positions to be ranked 18. Suryakumar Yadav continues to rule the roost as the No.1 T20I batter while Hardik Pandya, despite not playing a T20I since August, remains the No. 3-ranked T20Is all-rounder.