ICC rankings: Pakistan's Sadia Iqbal becomes No.1 T20I bowler
England's Sophie Ecclestone, who missed the recent series against West Indies, has dropped to fourth on the list
ESPNcricinfo staff
27-May-2025 • 9 hrs ago
Sadia Iqbal overtook Sophie Ecclestone as the top-ranked T20I bowler • PA Photos/Getty Images
Pakistan left-arm spinner Sadia Iqbal has reclaimed the top spot on the ICC's T20I rankings, thanks largely to England's Sophie Ecclestone missing their recently completed series against West Indies and dropping to fourth place. Ecclestone was left out of Charlotte Edwards' first squad after picking up a knee injury at the WPL, where she played for UP Warriorz. Ecclestone has since returned to action for Lancashire Women.
Sadia credited former Pakistan captain Sana Mir for helping her make improvements to her game recently. "She (Sana Mir) obviously had a lot of experience in women's cricket. The way she's served Pakistan cricket, she has been number one bowler during her days. I used to keep talking to her while we were on tour regarding bowling different variations," she said in a PCB video.
Lauren Bell, who was the leading wicket-taker in the England-West Indies T20I series, has moved up 13 places into sixth while Linsey Smith and Issy Wong have jumped 37 and 32 places respectively. Wong's ascendence will be particularly pleasing as she was making her comeback to the squad after last playing against Ireland in September 2024 and did not feature at the T20 World Cup.
Though West Indies were swept 3-0 in the series, their captain Hayley Matthews continued to impress with individual brilliance. She was the leading run-scorer with 177 runs in the series, including a century in the opening game, and moved up two places on the rankings to slot in behind Beth Mooney. Matthews is now 29 points behind Mooney and with West Indies due to play South Africa next month, she could be eyeing top spot. In moving up the rankings, she displaced Tahlia McGrath and Smriti Mandhana to No.3 and 4 respectively. Matthews also remains the leading allrounder, 54 points ahead of Amelia Kerr.
England's new captain Nat Sciver-Brunt has entered the top 10, after scoring a half-century in the T20I series. She sits at No.9, while former captain Heather Knight jumped seven spots to 17 and Sophia Dunkley, who was the third leading run-scorer in the series, moved eight places to No.29.