Mooney moves up in ICC Women’s ODI batting rankings

Australia batter Beth Mooney has advanced one place to third position in the ICC Women’s ODI Batting Rankings after smashing an unbeaten half-century against South Africa in the opening match of their ICC Women’s Championship series in Adelaide.

Mooney, who last week regained the number one position in the ICC Women’s T20I Batting Rankings, has overtaken South Africa’s Laura Wolvaardt and would be hoping to move back towards the top in the longer format, in which too she has been number one in the past.

Kim Garth and Ellyse Perry are the other Australia players to gain in the latest weekly update after Australia’s eight-wicket win that lifts them to the top of the ICC Women’s Championship points table. Australia are now on 20 points from 13 matches with South Africa second on 18 from 13.

Pakistan and New Zealand are on 16 points each after 18 and 15 matches, respectively, while England (15 from 12), India (15 from nine), Bangladesh (13 from 15), Sri Lanka (11 from 15), the West Indies (eight from 12) and Ireland (two from 12) follow in the 10-team league championship that will see hosts India and five other teams qualify directly for the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 with the bottom four teams getting a chance to make it through a qualifying tournament.

All-rounder Garth, who played for Ireland till 2019 before moving to Australia, has progressed four places to joint-38^th in the bowling rankings after her Player of the Match performance of two for 18. Perry is up two places to 51^st among bowlers and up to seventh in the all-rounders’ list.

South Africa all-rounder Marizanne Kapp has advanced from 10^th to eighth position in the batting rankings after contributing 50 runs while Nadine de Klerk is up three places to 78^th. In the bowling rankings, Masabata Klaas has progressed from 32^nd to 26^th position.

The T20I rankings see Australia’s Ashleigh Gardner (up one place to 11^th), Ireland all-rounder Orla Prendergast (up eight places to 38^th) and Zimbabwe’s Kelis Ndhlovu (up 13 places to 46^th) make notable progress in the top 50 of the batting rankings. In the bowling rankings, Australia’s Annabel Sutherland (up 10 places to 24^th) and Ireland’s Laura Delaney (up eight places to 48^th) are among the main gainers.