India Women’s Test and ODI captain Mithali Raj on Tuesday reclaimed the No. 1 place in the latest ICC Women’s ODI rankings. The 38-year-old jumped 4 places to maintain the top spot in the official ratings.
Even though India Women lost the 3-match ODI series 1-2 to England, Mithali Raj had a wonderful series, getting half-centuries in all 3 matches. She hit 72 in the first one-dayer in Bristol, 59 in the 2nd game in Taunton, and a match-winning 75 not out in the final game in Worcester.
Tweeting their latest rankings, the ICC posted:
“@M_Raj03 is the new No.1. In the latest @MRFWorldwide ICC Women’s ODI Player Rankings for batting, the India skipper climbs to the top of the table.”
Mithali Raj had earlier reached first place in the ICC Women’s ODI rankings in February 2018. The first time she climbed to the top of the tables was back in April 2005.
The Indian skipper started trending on social media later it became known that she had become the No. 1 in ODIs again. Twitterati bestowed praise on her. Some called her the ‘queen’ of the cricket field, while a few others used words like ‘Mighty Mithali’ to explain her feat. Here are some Twitter responses to Mithali Raj’s achievement:
Indian Women's Cricket Team Captain Mithali Raj becomes the No. 1 Ranked Bat-Women in ICC Ranking. She is 38 years old and still performing so well. #MithaliRaj #ODIRanking #No1 #WomensCricket https://t.co/OB1ORjINFk
— Fantasy Prediction For Free (@fp4f_family) July 6, 2021
Indian batters ruling in T20 and ODI rankings! @M_Raj03 back to where she belongs- an all time great 🐐 ! Congratulations legend #MithaliRaj 👏👏 @BCCIWomen #Legend
— Reema Malhotra (@ReemaMalhotra8) July 6, 2021
First time Mithali Raj became the number 1 was in April 2005.
16 years apart, she is back to number one now. #ENGvsIND #ENGvIND #MithaliRaj pic.twitter.com/JHTO6IdmWC
— Krithika (@krithika0808) July 6, 2021
Queen Of Cricket World 👑🤙@M_Raj03 #MithaliRaj https://t.co/Dgyp9kGDyz pic.twitter.com/r6vXM6qfMC
— ಬಾಸ್ ᴷᴬᴬᵀᴱᴿᴬ (@ShankarDBOSSian) July 6, 2021
All hail Mithali Raj
— sourav (@Purplepatch22) July 6, 2021
Mithali Raj becomes the number 1 ranked Bat-Women in ICC ranking – she is 38 years old and still going strong. Captain, Leader, Legend.
— THE REAL CRIC INFO (@RohanSatpati) July 6, 2021
Synonym of consistency: Mithali Raj 👌❤
— RaJ🇮🇳 (@Proud_gayboy) July 6, 2021
😎🏏 MIGHTY MITHALI! Congratulations to our skipper @M_Raj03 on reclaiming the No.1 spot in the ICC Women's ODI Batting Rankings for the eighth time ✨
📷 Getty • #mithaliraj #womenscricket #iccrankings #BharatArmy pic.twitter.com/XsyARnlLmH
— The Bharat Army (@thebharatarmy) July 6, 2021
ICC ODI Rankings
Our Queen 👑 @M_Raj03 at No. 1 position 🎉💃Q: How old are you??
A: It doesn't matter 😉#MithaliRaj pic.twitter.com/14MbpgZ6Ht— PrIyA pUnIa❤ (@priyafan16) July 6, 2021
The picture speaks a thousand words! 😍
Here’s to @M_Raj03 on claiming the No. 1️⃣ spot in the latest #ICCRankings for Women’s ODI batting. #MithaliRaj pic.twitter.com/YrBQAp0c9b
— SportsAdda (@sportsadda_) July 6, 2021
I don’t seek validation from people: Mithali Raj
During her victorious 75 in the third ODI against England, Mithali Raj also became the leading run-scorer in women’s international cricket, get past Charlotte Edwards’ tally of 10,273 runs.
Although she was in great form, the 38-year-old faced some critique over her strike rate. Reacting to the same, following India Women’s win in the final ODI, Mithali Raj added:
“I do read that the criticism is about my strike rate, but as I have said earlier also, I don’t seek validation from people. I’ve played for a long time, and I know that I have a certain responsibility in the team. I don’t look to please people.”
“I’m here to play the role that is assigned to me by the team management. When you’re chasing a target, you pick your bowlers, you pick your length, you pick the areas. Because I’m in a good flow, I need to make the best use of myself in the middle, and the entire batting unit revolves around me,” Mithali Raj added.
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