ICC Women's T20I rankings: Australia's Ashleigh Gardner, Meg Lanning make impressive gains after fruitful New Zealand series

Australia all-rounder Ashleigh Gardner and skipper Meg Lanning have made impressive gains in the latest International Cricket Council (ICC) Women’s T20I Player Rankings after finishing as the leading run-scorers in their three-match series against New Zealand that the home side won by 2-1.

Gardner’s series-topping 90 runs, which came in only two innings, won her the player of the series award and lifted her seven places to a career best-equalling 18th position among batters. 

Lanning, who has been top-ranked in both ODIs and T20Is in the past, has advanced a place to take fifth position after aggregating 71 runs, the second highest in the series.

In the T20I rankings for bowlers, Australia leg-spinner Georgia Wareham has reached a career best-equalling 10th position after her five wickets in the series helped her advance five places.

Meanwhile, left-arm spinner Sophie Molineux (up two places to 13th) and seam bowler Delissa Kimmince (up eight places to 22nd) have also progressed in the bowlers’ list.

For New Zealand, former captain Suzie Bates and present captain Sophie Devine have retained their second and fourth positions, respectively.

Another former captain and left-hander Amy Satterthwaite, has re-entered the rankings in 35th position after finishing as the highest-scorer for her side with 69 runs.

Notably, Satterthwaite was on maternity leave for 18 months, during which she also missed this year’s ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in Australia, the ICC press release stated.

Amelia Kerr has retained fourth position among bowlers while Devine has gained eight slots to reach 26th position, still a long away from her career-best fifth position attained 10 years ago.

For England, Natalie Sciver remains the only batter in the top 10 and is now second among all-rounders. Tammy Beaumont (up three places to 24th) and Amy Jones (up four places to 25th) have moved up after contributing in excess of 100 runs each in their side’s 5-0 defeat of former T20 World champions West Indies.

Left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone remains in number one position after her six wickets in the series while Sarah Glenn’s series-topping seven wickets have helped her gain 12 slots and reach ninth position. Katherine Brunt’s six wickets see her gain 10 places to 12th.

West Indies’s hard-hitting opener Deandra Dottin has advanced five places to reach 15th position after amassing 185 runs in the series including two fifties while captain Stafanie Taylor has gained four places to reach 52nd position. Taylor, the leading batter from her side in eighth position, has also moved up to joint-fourth among all-rounders.

The latest rankings update also sees the German batting pair of Christina Gough (up 146 places to 69th) and Janet Ronalds (up 115 places to joint-82nd) move up after their side defeated Austria 5-0.

In the ICC Women’s T20I Team Rankings, Australia, England and New Zealand retain the top three positions with the West Indies in sixth place.