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India’s Smriti Mandhana has attained the top spot in the ICC ODI rankings for batswomen. In the latest rankings released, the 22-year old left-handed opener jumped three places to grab the number one spot.

Smriti was the player of the series in the recently-concluded three-match ODI series against New Zealand. She had scored 105 and 90 in the first two ODIs, helping India to a rare series win in New Zealand.

Ellyse Perry is second in the rankings, while another Aussie Meg Lanning is third. Indian ODI skipper Mithali Raj has slipped to the fifth position.

In the ODI Bowler’s rankings, veteran pacer Jhulan Goswami is fourth, with Poonam Yadav at eighth, and fellow spinner Deepti Sharma at ninth.

Deepti is fourth in the All-rounders standings and is the sole Indian in the top-10.

India outclassed New Zealand by 35 runs in the fifth and final One Day International at the Westpac Stadium to clinch the five-match series 4-1 on Sunday.

Spinner Yuzvendra Chahal claimed three wickets as India bundled out New Zealand for 217 in 44.1 overs.

James Neesham top-scored for the hosts with 44 runs off 32 balls.

Mohammed Shami is chosen the Man of the Series. Ambati Rayudu is adjudged the Man of the Match.

Earlier, riding on Ambati Rayudu’s 90 and a quickfire 45 off just 22 balls by Hardik Pandya towards the end, India were bowled out for 252 runs in 49.5 overs.

Pandya hit a hat-trick of sixes to spinner Todd Astle in the 47th over when India’s score was 205 for 7.

With a strike rate of 204.55, he hit five sixes and two fours taking India to a respectable total.

Ambati Rayudu and Vijay Shankar stitched together a 98-run stand for the 5th wicket when India were tottering at 18 for 4 following MS Dhoni’s dismissal.

Vijay Shankar made a morale-boosting 45 runs that included four boundaries.

Following his dismissal, Kedar Jadhav joined his CSK teammate Ambati Rayudu as the duo added another 74 runs taking India close to 200 when Rayudu was dismissed for 90.

In Women’s Cricket, New Zealand beat India by eight wickets in the third and final One Day International at Hamilton today. Put into bat, the visitors were bundled out for 149 in 44 overs. Deepti Sharma with 52 off 90 balls made a significant contribution.

From New Zealand, Anna Peterson took four wickets in 10 overs and was declared Player of the match.

In reply, hosts overhauled the 150 run target, in 29.2 overs. Susie Bates and Amy Satterthwaite scored the fifties to help the hosts in the consolation win.

India had already clinched the series by winning the first two games.  Smriti Mandhana was declared player of the series

Cricketer Mithali Raj made us proud yet again as she became the first woman to play 200 matches in the one-day international format when she played in Hamilton against New Zealand on Friday.

India’s one-day international captain already holds the record for being the most capped woman in one-day internationals.

She earned her 192nd cap to beat Charlotte Edward’s, former England captain when she led India against the English in the first match of their ICC Women’s Championship ODI series in April 2018.

Raj made her ODI debut in June 1999 against Ireland in Milton Keynes, where she scored 114 and India won by 161 runs.

India, leading 2-0 in the three-match series against New Zealand, are batting first in the final match of the series.

The Indian women’s cricket team defeated New Zealand by eight wickets in the second ODI to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

Smriti Mandhana continued her red-hot form in limited-overs cricket as she single-handedly powered India Women’s Cricket team to a scintillating eight-wicket victory against New Zealand in the second ODI in Oval.  Mandhana played an unbeaten match-winning knock of 90* to extend her impressive run for women in blue. She was well supported by captain Mithali Raj, who scored 63* and knitted an unbeaten 136-run stand for the third wicket to give India a comfortable win. It was a massive win and most importantly, under new coach W.V. Raman, the Indian eves have come out all guns blazing to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

New Zealand’s Trent Boult and Colin de Grandhomme wreaked havoc with the new ball to bundle out a hapless India for 92  to help hosts pull off a stunning 8 wickets win in the 4th and penultimate ODI at Hamilton. This is India’s seventh-lowest total in the 50-over format.

With India put to bat, paceman Boult, bowling his 10 overs at a stretch, troubled the Indian batsmen with his swing to return with impressive figures of 5 for 21.

Boult was ably supported by Grandhomme who took 3 wickets, as the duo made perfect use of the new ball and swung the ball both ways to make life miserable for Indian batsmen.

In the absence of Virat Kohli and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the Indian batting unit found the going tough against the Kiwi bowling attack and lost wickets regularly.

With the series already out of the hosts’ grasp after India won the first three games, New Zealand ensured earning some pride from this win.
The last match of the series is in Wellington.

India’s Ambati Rayudu has been banned from bowling in international cricket. Part-time bowler Rayudu was reported after India’s one-day international defeat by Australia on 12 January.

He failed to submit to a test of his action within the stipulated 14 days.

“The suspension will remain in place until he is tested and can demonstrate he is able to bowl with a legal action,” said a statement from the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Primarily a batsman and part of the India ODI team currently playing a five-match series in New Zealand, Rayudu bowled two overs for 13 runs in the match in Sydney.

The ICC added: “Rayudu may be allowed to bowl in domestic cricket events played under the auspices of the BCCI (Indian cricket board).”

Indian women cricket team beat New Zealand by 8 wickets in 2nd ODI at Mount Maunganui; Chasing a target of 162 runs,  India have now taken an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three match series.

Smriti Mandhan continued her red-hot form in limited-overs cricket as she single-handedly powered India Women’s Cricket team to a scintillating eight-wicket victory against New Zealand in the second ODI in Oval.

Mandhana played an unbeaten match-winning knock of 90* to extend her impressive run for women in blue. She was well supported by captain Mithali Raj, who scored 63* and knitted an unbeaten 136-run stand for the third wicket to give India a comfortable win.

It was a massive win and most importantly, under new coach W.V. Raman, the Indian eves have come out all guns blazing to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

India wins the 3rd ODI against New Zealand; Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli brings up their individual fifties; India leads the 5 match ODI series 3-0.

India defeated New Zeland by 7 wickets to clinch series 3-0. Shikhar Dhawan was the first to fall for 28 runs. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli shared a 113 run stand before Rohit fell for 62 runs. Virat completed his half century and fell for 60 runs. After that Rayudu and Dinesh Karthik completed remaining work and helped India to win the match with 42 balls remaining.

Earlier, New Zealand failed to capitalise batting first to get bowled out for 243 runs. Pacers Mohammad Shami and Bhubneshwar Kumar gave india the early breakthroughs getting openers cheaply. Colin Munro, Martin Guptil and Kane Williamson were back with just 59 runs on the board. Ross Taylor and Tin Latham stitched a  119 run stand for the 4th wicket to help rebuilt the Kiwi innings. Latham fell for 51 runs while Ross Taylor missed his hundred by 7 runs to fall for 93 runs.

Hardik Pandya on return impressed with 2 wickets. Shami picked 3 wickets while Bhuvi and Chahal bagged 2 wickets apiece.

India made two changes to its lineup including Hardik Pandya and Dinesh Kartik to the squad.  Wicket Keeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni did not play this game due to injury.

India thrash New Zealand by 90 runs in the 2nd ODI to take 2-0 in 5 match series; Openers Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan score half centuries; Kuldeep Yadav picks four wickets.

Following an impressive show by openers Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan, India bowlers displayed tremendous grit to bundle out New Zealand for 234 in 40.2 overs, 90 runs short of the target, in the second One Day International at Bay Oval to take a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.

Spinner Kuldeep Yadav, who had claimed four wickets in India’s win in the first ODI in Napier, once again took four wickets to lead the visitors’ bowling attack in Mount Maunganui. Fast bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar and spinner Yuzvendra Chahal picked up two wickets each, while Mohammed Shami and Kedar Jadhav chipped in with a wicket each. Tail-ender Doug Bracewell scored 57 runs and was the only fifty-plus scorer in the New Zealand batting line-up.

Earlier, India rode on fifties by Rohit and Dhawan to score 324 for four in their allotted 50 overs. Rohit Sharma top-scored for India with 87 runs and stitched a 154-run stand with opener Shikhar Dhawan, who contributed with a 66-run knock. Captain Virat Kohli missed out on his 49th ODI half-century on a third consecutive occasion and lost his wicket for 43 runs. India’s number four batsman Ambati Rayudu fell three runs short of his 10th ODI fifty as he was dismissed for 47 runs. MS Dhoni remained not out on 48.