Australia and India women's cricketers take the first shot at Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Women's Rankings

Jhulan to wear golden armband to signify her number-one ranking in bowlers’ list; Sthalekar and Nitschke to contest for top all-rounders’ spot

Australia and India women’s cricketers will take the first shot at the recently introduced Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Women’s Player Rankings when they go head to head in a five-match series which starts in Sydney from Friday.

Claire Taylor of England leads the Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Women’s Rankings for batters by a distance but second-placed former India captain Mithali Raj is just ahead of Australia’s Lisa Sthalekar who was short-listed for the ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year Awards in 2006, 2007 and 2008.

And if Mithali succeeds in repeating the same form she showed on the last tour to England this summer where she was the leading run-getter with 162 runs, the 25-year-old from Jodhpur would not only widen the gap on Sthalekar but would also narrow the difference with front-runner Taylor.

Besides Sthalekar, three other Australia players are inside the top 10 – captain Karen Rolton (seventh), Alex Blackwell (eighth) and Shelley Nitschke (ninth).

Jaya Sharma (13th) and Anjum Chopra (15th) are the other India batters in the top 20 apart from Mithali.

India captain Jhulan Goswami, who won the ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year Award in 2007, is on top of the Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Women’s Ranking for bowlers while Nitschke is not too far behind in third place with England’s Isa Guha between the two.

To signify her number-one ranking Jhulan will wear the golden armband, something the top batter and bowler will wear for all ODI matches. With Taylor of England not returning to action until the ICC Women’s World Cup in March, Jhulan will become the first player in international cricket to earn that distinction.

The Indian captain admits she looks forward to wearing the armband: “It will be a big thing for me in my career to wear the golden armband for the first match.

“It is really special and I am hopeful that I will maintain my standards and will do well for my country,” she said.

Commenting on the importance of the series against Australia, Jhulan said: “It is a very important series for us as these will be the last international matches that we will play before the ICC Women’s World Cup.

“The last series (in England) was disappointing so we want to bounce back and do well and lift our confidence ahead of the World Cup.”

Australia also has Emma Sampson (sixth), Sthalekar (ninth), Kirsten Pike (11th) and Sarah Andrews (18th) in the top 20 bowlers while India boasts Rumeli Dhar, Amita Sharma and Neetu David in 12th, 13th and 14th places.

Australia duo of Sthalekar and Nitschke are engaged in a battle of their own in the Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Women’s Rankings for all-rounders. Sthalekar is just six points ahead of Nitschke and a good performance by Nitschke will take her ahead of her team-mate.

Reflecting on the mood in the camp, Nitschke said: “We are confident but by no means over-confident. We know we have to be on top of our game to beat teams likes like New Zealand, India and England which are all strong sides.

“India is going to be pretty keen to come out after a bit of a loss against England and play some good cricket against us but we are determined to do well on our home turf too,” she said.

Australia v India ODI series schedule:

31 Oct – First ODI, Hurstville Oval, Sydney
1 Nov – Second ODI, Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney
5 Nov – Third ODI, North Sydney Oval
8 Nov – Fourth ODI, Manuka Oval, Canberra
9 Nov – Fifth ODI, Manuka Oval, Canberra

Full details of the ICC Women’s World Cup, including fixtures, team profiles and biographies on all leading players, can be found at the ICC Women’s World Cup website at www.icc-cricket.com

About Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Women’s Rankings and women’s cricket

The rankings were launched in Mumbai on 16 October 2008 and have been introduced as part of the ICC’s continued promotion of women’s cricket. They will initially apply to ODI cricket only and will help identify where the leading players stand in women’s international cricket to add further competition and context to their achievements.

Next year will be huge for women’s cricket with the ICC Women’s World Cup to be played in Sydney, Australia, from 7 to 22 March. This will be the first time the biggest event in women’s cricket will be played under the banner of the ICC following the merger with the International Women’s Cricket Council in 2005.

Then in June, the ICC World Twenty20 in England will include a men’s and women’s competition running simultaneously. The semi-finals and final of the women’s event will be played at the same venue on the same day as the men’s tournament.