According to former captain Misbah-ul-Haq, Pakistan attained the No. 1 ranking in ODIs earlier this year by defeating relatively weaker Australian and New Zealand teams. He emphasized the significance of considering factual information when evaluating rankings.
Currently, India holds the top spot in ODI cricket rankings. However, earlier this year in May, Pakistan claimed the No. 1 ranking after defeating New Zealand by 102 runs in an ODI match held in Karachi.
Misbah claimed on A Sports that Pakistan’s ascension to the top rank in ODIs appeared to be hollow.
“New Zealand and Australia came to Pakistan. They were the top-ranked teams. Their C and D team came. We won against them and our rating points increased. Then West Indies and other teams came and we won against them as well. We became happy by achieving No. 1 rank, but we should keep actual facts in mind,” the former captain was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
“Australia’s C team even won one match against us. Then New Zealand’s D team came, as all their main players went for IPL. We need to realistically think where we stand as our main team is playing and their third tier players are playing, yet they are getting so close to us. Ranking doesn’t matter,”
Misbah-ul-Haq
In a thrilling ODI series in 2022, Pakistan emerged victorious over Australia with a 2-1 win. Earlier this year, they displayed their dominance by defeating the Kiwis 4-1 in a four-match ODI series. The stunning performance led to Pakistan being crowned as the No. 1 ranked ODI team for the first time ever after their triumph in the fourth match of the series.
Pakistan need to stay on top for six months to celebrate No. 1 ranking, says Akram
Misbah was joined in the conversation by Pakistan veteran Wasim Akram. He believes that a team should only enjoy reaching No. 1 in the ICC rankings if they can keep it for an extended length of time.
“We should celebrate the No. 1 ranking after remaining on top for six months at least,”
Wasim Akram
Meanwhile, they will play the Netherlands in their opening encounter of the 2023 World Cup on Friday, October 6, at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.