At the moment there are 12 full-time members of the International Cricket Council (ICC) which include, Indian, Pakistan, England, South Africa, Bangladesh, Australia, New Zealand, Afghanistan, Ireland, Sri Lanka, West Indies, and Zimbabwe. Out of these many teams, it gets difficult to pick the Top 10 ODI Batsmen in the world 2021.
However, the ICC, every year, based on the recent performance of the players, pick the 10 best players in different categories. But today we will take a look at the 10 Best Men ODI Batsman in the world as of 2021.
These rankings do change over time depending upon the matches a player play and how he performs in the One Day International (ODI) match.
The player is rated out of 1000 points and is scored majorly on the basis of the runs he scores in the match.
Table of Contents
Who is the best batsman in the world right now?
| POS | PLAYER NAME | TEAM | CAREER BEST RATING |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Babar Azam | PAK | 873 v England, 13/07/2021 |
| 2 | Virat Kohli | IND | 911 v England, 12/07/2018 |
| 3 | Rohit Sharma | IND | 885 v Sri Lanka, 06/07/2019 |
| 4 | Ross Taylor | NZ | 841 v Bangladesh, 05/06/2019 |
| 5 | Aaron Finch | AUS | 798 v England, 25/06/2019 |
| 6 | Jonny Bairstow | ENG | 796 v India, 26/03/2021 |
| 7 | David Warner | AUS | 880 v Pakistan, 26/01/2017 |
| 8 | Shai Hope | WI | 808 v Bangladesh, 17/05/2019 |
| 9 | Kane Williamson | NZ | 799 v India, 09/07/2019 |
| 10 | Quinton de Kock | SA | 813 v Sri Lanka, 10/03/2019 |
Official Men’s ODI Batsmen Ranking According To ICC As On 27 November 2021
1. Babar Azam
Babar Azam is a Pakistani cricketer who has been turning heads. He is a top-order batsman who also serves as the Captain of the Pakistani cricket team in T20 and Vice-Captain in ODI format. Making his ODI debut at a nascent age of 20 in 2015, he was the highest run-scorer for Pakistan in the ICC World Cup 2019 which took place in England.
In 2017, he was awarded the PCB’s ODI Player of the year when he became the first player in history to have scored 5 consecutive centuries in the same country. At just 25 years old, he is said to be a prodigy. He ranks 3rd on the list of the top 10 ODI batsmen in the World.
In his debut ODI match, he scored 54 runs off just 60 deliveries. He is also the only Pakistani player to have scored 3 centuries in T20 matches in a calendar year.
Fun Facts:
Nickname: The Emperor and Bobzy
Height: 5 feet 11 inches
Batting: Right-handed batsman
Spouse: Unmarried
ODI Debut: 31st May 20015 against Zimbabwe
ODI Batting Stats: 80 matches, 78 innings with an Average of 56.8 and a Strike Rate of 88.7
2. Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli is the India skipper and is currently sitting at the number 1 position in the ICC ODI player ranking of 2021. Being a top-order batsman he scores lots of runs for the team and personally loves chasing a target than putting up a score to be chased by the other team.
Born on 5th November 1988 in Delhi, he made it to the International format in 2008 when he was just 19 years old and now he is rated 869/ 1000 by the ICC.
He has the record of reaching 11,000 ODI runs faster than anybody else in the World, even faster than Sachin Tendulkar. He has been awarded the ICC ODI Player of the Year award 3 times – 2012, 2017, and 2018.
Fun Facts:
Nickname: Chikoo/ Chiku
Height: 5 feet 9 inches
Batting: Right-handed batsman
Spouse: Anushka Sharma (2017)
ODI Debut: 18th August 2008 against Sri Lanka
ODI Batting Stats: 254 matches, 245 innings with an Average of 59.1 and a Strike Rate of 93.2
3. Rohit Sharma
Rohit Sharma is another Indian Cricketer on the list, he is the opener for the Indian cricket team and is also the Vice-Captain of the Indian team. His full name is Rohit Gurunath Sharma and was born on 30th April 1987 in Nagpur.
He started his career in 2007 when he was 20 years old and currently ranks 2nd on the list of 10 best ODI batsmen in the World.
Rohit Sharma has the record of hitting the most runs in an ODI match in the World at 264 runs. Also he has the most number of Double Centuries scored by any cricketer in the world in ODI format, with 3 double centuries.
Fun Facts:
Nickname: The Hitman Sharma
Height: 5 feet 7 inches
Batting: Right-handed batsman
Spouse: Ritika Sajdeh (2015)
ODI Debut: 23rd June 2007 against Ireland
ODI Batting Stats: 227 matches, 220 innings with an Average of 49.0 and a Strike Rate of 88.9
4. Ross Taylor
Ross Taylor is a cricketer from New Zealand and plays in the middle order. He has served as the captain for the New Zealand cricket team in the past. His full name is Luteru Ross Poutao Taylor and was born on 8th March 1984 in Lower Hutt, Wellington. He ranks 4th on the list of 10 best ODI batsmen in the World.
Making his ODI debut in 2006 when he was 22 years old, but only managed to score 15 runs, however, in his 3rd ODI match he scored 128* against Sri Lanka. He is also the select few players in the world who have scored a double century in Test format.
He has played in 4 ICC World Cups – 2007, 2011, 2015 and 2019. Also, Ross Taylor is the first New Zealander to have centuries against all nations who play Test games in the ODI format. Not just this, he is only the 4th player in the history of the game who has scored a century on his birthday.
Fun Facts:
Nickname: Rosco
Height: 6 feet 1 inch
Batting: Right-handed batsman
Spouse: Victoria Jayne Brown (2011)
ODI Debut: 1st March 2006 against West Indies
ODI Batting Stats: 233 matches, 217 innings with an Average of 48.2 and a Strike Rate of 83.4
5. Aaron Finch
Aaron Finch is another Australian batsman on the list and ranks 9th on the list of top 10 ODI Batsmen in the World. He is the opening batsman for the Australian cricket team and serves as the captain in the limited over cricket format.
Aaron Finch’s full name is Aaron James Finch and was born on 17th November 1986 in Colac, Victoria, Australia. He made his ODI debut in 2013 at the age of 27 against Sri Lanka where he could only score 16 runs. However, this does not overshadow his record.
In T20I he holds the record of highest individual score of 172 which is also the highest run scored by any opener and captain. And by doing so he broke the record of no other player but himself of 156 runs. Recently, he and David Warner set a record highest ever opening partnership with 285 runs against India.
Fun Facts:
Nickname: Finchy
Height: 5 feet 9 inches
Batting: Right-handed batsman
Spouse: Amy Griffiths (2018)
ODI Debut: 11th January 2013 against Sri Lanka
ODI Batting Stats: 132 matches, 128 innings with an Average of 41.9 and a Strike Rate of 88.4
6. Jonny Bairstow
Jonny Bairstow is a 31 year old English wicket-keeper batsman born on 26th September 1989 and son of former English keeper David Bairstow. Being the only English cricketer amongst the top men ODI batsmen in the world speaks volume of the talent he has. He made his first class debut in 2009 and was the top-scorer with an unbeaten 82 in the second innings.
He made his One Day International debut against India in 2011 in the fifth ODI game against the visiting Indians in Cardiff, and made it special with a stunning inning of 21-ball 41 which helped his side win the match. Bairstow is also the first England cricketer to have scored 3 consecutive One Day International hundreds a feat he attained in 2018.
Jonny Bairstow has a strike rate of 103.72 in ODI and has 10 centuries and 13 half-centuries to his name.
Fun Facts:
Nickname: Bluey, YJB
Height: 5 feet 9 inches
Batting: Right-handed batsman
Spouse: Single
ODI Debut: 16th November 2016 against Sri Lanka
ODI Batting Stats: 81 matches, 76 innings with an Average of 53.7 and a Strike Rate of 74.9
7. David Warner
An Australian cricketer who currently ranks 6th on the list of the top 10 ODI Batsmen in the World. He has served as a captain for the Australian Cricket Team and still opens for them. His full name is David Andrew Warner and he was born on the 27th October 1986 in Paddington, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
In 2009, Warner debut in ODI when he was just 20 years old against South Africa where he just scored 5 runs, however, since 1877 he is the first Australian cricketer to have not played a single First-Class match.
In the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup, when playing against Afghanistan, he scored the highest in his career of 178 which helped Australia reach the highest tally in any World Cup ever at 417/6.
Fun Facts:
Nickname: Lloyd, and The Reverend
Height: 5 feet 7 inches
Batting: Left-handed batsman
Spouse: Candice Warner (2015)
ODI Debut: 18th January 2009, South Africa
ODI Batting Stats: 128 matches, 126 innings with an Average of 45.4 and a Strike Rate of 95.5
8. Shai Hope
Shai Diego Hope is a 27 years old Barbadian cricketer who made his ODI debut on 16th November 2016 in the 2nd match of a tri-series against Sri Lanka. Hope scored his first International ODI century in his second match against Zimbabwe in the same tri-series. He is the only Barbadian cricketer in the list of the top 10 ICC ODI Men Batsmen in the world in 2021.
In the 81 ODIs Hope has played, he has had an average of 52.94 and a strike rate of 74.91. He has also scored 10 centuries with a highest score of 170 in just 152 balls which came against Ireland on the 5th May 2019 in a tri-nation series. He has also scored 19 half centuries in ODI so far.
Shai Hope is a right-handed wicketkeeper-batsman.
Fun Facts:
Nickname: Shai
Height: 5 feet 7 inches
Batting: Right-handed batsman
Spouse: Unmarried
ODI Debut: 16th November 2016 against Sri Lanka
ODI Batting Stats: 81 matches, 76 innings with an Average of 53.7 and a Strike Rate of 74.9
9. Kane Williamson
Kane Williamson is another player from New Zealand on the list and ranks 7th on the list of the top 10 ODI batsmen in the world as of now with 773 points. Currently, Williamson is the captain of the New Zealand Cricket Team in all formats.
Born on 8th August 1990 in Tauranga, New Zealand, he is a top order batsman for the team. Williamson debuted in the ODI format in 2010 at the age of 20 years where he played against India went back to the stands on a duck. However, this did not stop him from reaching heights.
He holds the record of being the fastest New Zealand player to score 3,000 runs with just 78 innings and 5th fastest in the world. He also helped his team to reach the finals of the 2019 ICC World Cup where they lost to England after a nail-biting match.
Fun Facts:
Nickname: Steady the Ship
Height: 5 feet 8 inches
Batting: Right-handed batsman
Spouse: Unmarried
ODI Debut: 10th August 2010 against India
ODI Batting Stats: 151 matches, 144 innings with an Average of 47.49 and a Strike Rate of 81.76
10. Quinton de Kock
Another South African on the list of best ODI Batsmen in the World where he ranks 10th is Quinton de Kock. He is the wicket-keeper for the teams as well. He was born on 17th December 1992 in Johannesburg, Transvaal Province, South Africa.
He made his ODI debut in 2013 when he was just 20 years old against New Zealand where he scored 18 runs. After returning to the ODI team in November of 2013, he scored a blasting century against Pakistan but he really outshined in December of 2013 when he scored 3 consecutive centuries against India.
Not just this, in 2016, he scored 178 runs in just 113 balls against Australia. He also holds the record to score the fastest 12 ODI centuries in just 74 ODIs, a feat that is yet to be broken.
Fun Facts:
Nickname: Quinny
Height: 5 feet 7 inches
Batting: Left-handed batsman
Spouse: Sasha Hurly (2016)
ODI Debut: 19th January 2013 against New Zealand
ODI Batting Stats: 124 matches, 124 innings with an Average of 45.38 and a Strike Rate of 95.47
With this we conclude the list of top 10 Men ODI batsmen in the world in 2021 as per ICC in ODIs. Do you think someone else has performed better and deserves to be on the list? Share their names with us in comments.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Question 1: Who is ODI No 1 batsman?
Answer 1: As of now, the 26-year-old Babar Azam from Pakistan is the ODI #1 batsman in the world with an 865/1000 rating given by the International Cricket Council.