Afghanistan climbed above England in the latest ICC men's ODI team rankings after securing the tri-series title with a convincing victory over Zimbabwe on Friday, October 23. A disciplined display with the ball set up Afghanistan's triumph in Sharjah, as Zimbabwe were bowled out for 169. Rashid Khan led the attack with three wickets, while Fazalhaq Farooqi, Mohammad Nabi and Bilal Sami claimed two wickets apiece.

Afghanistan made light work of the chase, reaching the target in the 35th over. Ibrahim Zadran anchored the innings with an unbeaten 70 off 96 deliveries, hitting four boundaries and a six. He first combined with Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who contributed 36, for a 68-run opening partnership before adding another 82 runs with captain Rahmat Shah, who scored 43.

Zadran's composed knock earned him the Player of the Match award, while Rashid was named Player of the Series after finishing the tournament with 11 wickets.

The title-winning campaign also brought a significant boost to Afghanistan's standing in the ODI rankings. They collected two rating points to move from eighth to seventh place, pushing England down to eighth after the latter suffered consecutive defeats against Pakistan and Sri Lanka in Rawalpindi.

Sri Lanka have consequently moved up to sixth in the standings, capitalising on England's recent setbacks.

Zimbabwe also earned two rating points following their run to the final but remain 11th in the rankings. Bangladesh, meanwhile, endured a disappointing tournament without a single victory and dropped two points, although they held on to ninth place.

UPDATED ICC ODI RANKINGS

1. India – 36 matches, 4122 points, rating 115
2. New Zealand – 35 matches, 3809 points, rating 109
3. South Africa – 34 matches, 3547 points, rating 104
4. Pakistan – 34 matches, 3505 points, rating 103
5. Australia – 35 matches, 3568 points, rating 102
6. Sri Lanka – 41 matches, 3896 points, rating 95
7. Afghanistan – 31 matches, 2926 points, rating 94
8. England – 36 matches, 3331 points, rating 93
9. Bangladesh – 41 matches, 3304 points, rating 81
10. West Indies – 37 matches, 2924 points, rating 79

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