Indian eves last in ICC ODI rankings despite series win

Dubai: Irrespective of their 3-2 win over New Zealand in the five-match series, India continues to languish at the bottom of the ICC Women's Championship table issued on Thursday.

Despite the loss, New Zealand moved up two places to joint fourth following its 2-1 win in the three Championship games that were played at the start of the series in Bangalore.

The White Ferns went into the series second from bottom on four points, but has now leapfrogged Sri Lanka and England and has risen to fifth, a fraction behind Pakistan.

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India has gained two points but remains rooted to the bottom of the table on five points, marginally below Sri Lanka when net run rates are factored in. In the final matches in round three England will host early pace-setters Australia later this month as Charlotte Edwards' side bid to climb the table.

England goes into the series knowing that a 3-0 series victory would move it to the top of the table, while Australia can extend its lead with a series win.

The ICC Women's Championship is a qualifying tournament for the ICC Women's World Cup 2017 and is being participated in by Australia, England, India, New Zealand, Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka and West Indies.

The top four sides from the ICC Women's Championship will gain automatic qualification for the event which is to be staged in England, while the bottom four sides will get a final chance of qualification through the ICC Women's World Cup Qualifier in 2017.

Read: Mithali Raj reaches milestone as Indian eves draw level against New Zealand

The tournament structure sees each team will play each other in one home or away series that will include three ODIs over a two and a half year period. As such, each side is guaranteed at least 21 ODIs over the tournament period.

There was good news for India captain Mithali Raj, who has become only the second batter to total 5,000 runs in the history of women's ODI's. The other player to achieve this feat is England's Charlotte Edwards, currently ranked second in the latest ICC Women's ODI Player Rankings for batters, who has an aggregate of 5,829 runs to date.

Mithali achieved several other notable milestones during this series and is now third in the all-time list of women's captains to pass the 2,500 mark, and currently stands on 2,543 runs, behind Australia great Belinda Clark (4,844) and Edwards (3,343).

The 32-year-old Rajasthan native now holds the record of scoring the most runs by a women's cricketer on home soil as she overtook Edwards' aggregate of 2,076. And her innings of 81 not out in the final tie of the five-match series was the 42nd half century (20 as captain) of her career and the right-hander is now second on the all-time list of batters who have scored the most fifties in ODI's, behind Edwards (54 fifties).

In reaching second place, Mithali overcame Australia's Karen Rolton. As a consequence, in the latest ICC Women's ODI Player Rankings for batters, Suzie Bates has risen one place to fifth and is now just five points adrift of her counterpart Mithali, who is unchanged in fourth position.

Sophie Devine has vaulted nine places to 12th after scoring 181 runs in the five matches (with a top score of 89), while the biggest Kiwi mover in the rankings is Anna Peterson who has vaulted 44 places to a career high 75th.

For India, Kaur has dropped two places to seventh, while there were gains for Goswami (up 17 places to 26th), Kamini (up 40 places to a career high 42nd), Bisht (up eight places to 85th) and the major mover was Deepti Sharma who has vaulted a mammoth 91 places to a career high 91st.

In the ICC Women's ODI Player Rankings for bowlers, the top 10 is unchanged however there was significant movement outside that with Nielsen (up one to 13th), Tahuhu (up 14 to 32nd), Bates (up 17 to a career high 33rd) and Devine (up 10 places to 35th) each benefiting from a consistent series with the ball. Bisht has risen nine places to a career high 15th, while her team-mates Rajeshwari Gayakwad (up 24 to a career high 30th), Kaur (up 18 places to 71st) and Deepti Sharma (up 54 places to a career high 77th) amongst a number of bowlers to make progressions.

Stafanie Taylor of the West Indies continues to lead the all-rounders' chart, however there were career high gains for both Goswami, who has jumped three places to second in the all-rounder rankings, as well as New Zealand's Bates who has moved up two places to fifth on 255 points.