Tilak Varma rises to No. 2 in ICC T20I Rankings; Varun Chakravarthy breaks into top 5
Dubai, Jan 29 (PTI): Talented India batter Tilak Varma climbed one spot to second, while mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy made a massive leap of 25 places to break into the top five in the latest ICC men's T20I rankings released on Wednesday.
Varma now sits just behind Travis Head in the batters' list, with the Australian maintaining a 23-point lead at the top.
The young Indian left-hander has been in sublime form, posting scores of 19 not out, 72 not out, and 18 in India's ongoing T20I series against England.
With two matches remaining in the series, Varma has a chance to overtake Head and become the youngest-ever player to top the rankings -- a record currently held by Babar Azam, who reached No. 1 at the age of 23 years and 105 days.
Varma's current rating of 832 points is the fourth-highest ever achieved by an Indian batter in T20I history, behind only Suryakumar Yadav, Virat Kohli, and KL Rahul.
India's Abhishek Sharma also made significant strides, jumping 59 places to 40th, while England's Liam Livingstone (up five spots to 32nd) and Ben Duckett (up 28 places to 68th) were the biggest gainers from the visiting team.
Chakravarthy’s rise
Chakravarthy's magical 5/24 in India's 26-run loss in the third T20I propelled him to top five in the T20I bowling rankings.
Meanwhile, fellow spinner Axar Patel moved up five places to 11th, just outside the top 10.
England’s Adil Rashid has reclaimed the No. 1 spot among T20I bowlers.
Rashid first claimed the top position at the end of 2023 and held it for much of last year until West Indies’ Akeal Hosein briefly surpassed him before Christmas.
Bumrah continues to dominate Test rankings
India's pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah remains the top-ranked Test bowler following his sensational performances in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.
His dominance across formats also earned him the prestigious Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year 2024.
Among Test all-rounders, West Indies’ Jomel Warrican has climbed to 24th, while Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan moved up two places to 15th in the Test batters’ rankings, which continue to be led by England’s Joe Root.
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Have no personal involvement in Cong’s action against some minority leaders: Shivakumar
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Friday said he has no personal involvement in action taken against certain Congress leaders from the minority community following allegations of an internal conspiracy during the recently held Davanagere South bypolls.
He clarified that the decisions were taken by the party high command based on available reports.
Asserting that party discipline is of utmost importance, Shivakumar, who is also the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president, sought to downplay concerns that action against minority leaders may send the message that “Muslims are being targeted.”
“I don’t have any personal involvement in this. Whatever decisions are taken are made by the party leadership. The party has its own reports. Decisions regarding MLAs or MLCs cannot be taken at the state level without instructions from Delhi,” he said.
Speaking to reporters, he added, “People may blame me; I am not concerned. Everyone must function in accordance with party discipline.”
Responding to concerns within sections of the party that recent actions may convey the impression that minority leaders are being targeted, he said the Congress exists for the welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, minorities, backward classes, farmers, and all sections of society.
The Congress has suspended MLC K Abdul Jabbar from primary membership and relieved another MLC, Naseer Ahmed, from the post of Chief Minister’s political secretary.
The action followed allegations by a group of Muslim leaders that certain party members conspired to defeat the official candidate in Davanagere South.
Following the action, speculation has emerged that Housing Minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan may also face disciplinary measures during the next cabinet reshuffle.
The three leaders had reportedly sought a Muslim candidate for the Davanagere South bypoll ticket, which the party instead allotted to the late MLA Shamanur Shivashankarappa’s grandson, Samarth Mallikarjun.
They were also said to have not actively participated in the campaign.
Shivakumar also rejected claims of factionalism within the ruling party amid speculation that leaders close to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah were being targeted.
Naseer Ahmed and Zameer Ahmed Khan are considered close to the CM.
Rejecting allegations of factionalism within the party, Shivakumar said, “We speak to each other every day. It is the media that creates divisions. Where is my faction? Has anyone put up a board saying they belong to the Siddaramaiah faction? Have I put up any such board?”
“All 139 legislators are my people, and they are all Siddaramaiah’s people as well. Everyone belongs to the Congress,” he added, saying there are no factions within the party and that such claims are media-driven.
Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Satish Jarkiholi met Shivakumar on Friday, a day after expressing concerns that disciplinary action against minority leaders may send the wrong message.
Shivakumar said he discussed with Jarkiholi the need to decongest Bengaluru traffic by diverting vehicles entering the city from state and national highways, along with party-related issues.
“We also discussed political matters in the interest of the party and the need to work together,” he said.
Later, speaking to reporters, Jarkiholi said he discussed with Shivakumar the issue of withdrawing Jabbar’s suspension. He said he will also visit New Delhi next week to meet the high command and discuss state developments.
“Jabbar’s suspension was discussed (with Shivakumar). It should be withdrawn. Let’s issue him a notice and allow him to reply. Then let’s send the report to the high command and seek their approval. High command approval is necessary because the instructions came from there. It may take some time,” he said.
Stating that he met the KPCC chief for “damage control,” the minister said, “We have tried to convince him. Sometimes certain decisions happen that need rectification.”
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