Cricket fans were left startled as Indian stalwarts Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were abruptly removed from the ICC ODI Men’s Batter Rankings.
Rohit and Virat Kohli were ranked No. 2 and No. 4, respectively, in the rankings. However, both batters had been removed from the top 10 and did not even feature in the top 100, which has sparked rumours of the duo announcing their retirement from the format.
Rohit and Kohli were firmly in the top 10. Rohit has gone up a spot from No.3 to No. 2 after Babar Azam endured a poor ODI series against the West Indies.
India’s Shubman Gill continues to hold the No.1 rank, while the sudden removal of Rohit and Kohli has bumped Shreyas Iyer up to No.6 from No. 8.
While the exact reason for the removal is not known. The players are yet to formally announce their retirement, not have they been inactive for a long duration as they were part of India’s victorious Champions Trophy 2025 squad this year.
This comes amidst growing speculation on the futures of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in ODI cricket.
After a young Indian team impressed under the captaincy of Shubman Gill in an away Test series against England, drawing 2-2 series in the tour.
However, a few hours later, the ICC rectified the error and reinstated both players to their rightful rankings. Rohit Sharma returned to second place, pushing Babar Azam back to third and reclaimed fourth, relegating Mitchell Marsh to Fifth.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli has retired from both T20I and Test cricket, leaving ODIs as the only international format they currently play.
With the decreasing ODI fixtures in recent years, uncertainty over the duo part of India’s plans for the 2027 World Cup has sparked among fans.
Meanwhile, India’s Kuldeep Yadav has slipped to third place in the ODI rankings. Meanwhile, Keshav Maharaj reclaimed the top spot following a match-winning performance in the first ODI against Australia in Cairns.
In the Men’s ODI batter rankings, Shubman Gill continues to lead with 784 points. He is one of four Indians in the top 10, along with Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer – who holds the sixth position.
West Indies skipper Shai Hope has climbed two spots to ninth after an unbeaten 120 runs against Pakistan. Other notable movers include South Africa’s Aiden Markram (21st), Temba Bavuma (23rd), and Australia’s Mitchell Marsh (48th), all making significant progress.
In the Men’s T20I rankings, India’s Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma continue to hold the top two spots. Captain Suryakumar Yadav ranked 6th while Yashasvi Jasiwal remains in 10th place.
South Africa’s Dewald Brevis has jumped nine position to 12th and Australia’s Mitchell Marsh and Glenn Maxwell have moved upto 25th and 30th respectively.
