Every week, cricket fans see headlines about a batter reaching number one or a team slipping a place in the ICC rankings. The tables look simple, but they are produced by a set of calculations that the International Cricket Council (ICC) runs on match scorecards. This guide explains, in plain terms, what the ICC itself says about how teams and players are ranked.
Rankings and ratings are not the same thing
The ICC uses two words that are often mixed up:
- Rating - the points a team or player has.
- Ranking - the position in the table that those points give.
So a player with a rating of 870 points may be ranked first or third, depending on what others have.
Which tables exist
Team rankings cover men's Tests, One Day Internationals (ODIs) and Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is), and women's ODIs and T20Is.
Player rankings are published for batting, bowling and all-rounders in each format.
How team rankings work
The ICC team rankings system was developed by David Kendix. The idea is close to a batting average:
- A team earns points from each match it plays.
- The points total is divided by the team's match or series total.
- The answer, rounded to the nearest whole number, is the team's rating.
The ICC's own comparison is that points take the place of runs, and matches take the place of dismissals. A team that keeps winning raises its average. A team that plays many matches and wins few sees its average fall.
Not every country appears in every table. The Test and ODI tables list teams that hold that status and meet the eligibility criteria. The T20I table is wider and includes all ICC Members that meet the criteria, which is why it is much longer than the Test table.
How player rankings work
Players are rated on a scale of 0 to 1000 points. The ICC describes the system as a series of calculations that produce a "sophisticated moving average". In practice:
- If a player does better than his or her past record, the rating goes up.
- If the performance falls below that record, the rating goes down.
- Recent matches count for more than old ones, but the whole career is reflected.
The ICC says the rankings aim to show which players could be picked for a World XI if the team were chosen today.
No panel, only the scorecard
Each performance is valued by a pre-programmed algorithm. The ICC states that there is no human intervention and no subjective assessment. Nobody judges the pitch either. If the scores in a match are high all round, runs earn less credit. If the scores are low, a batter who scores well earns more.
The strength of the opposition is also built into the calculation. According to the ICC, this means there is no built-in advantage in playing weaker teams.
What the points mean
| Rating | What the ICC says it means |
|---|---|
| 500 or more | A good, solid rating |
| 750 or more | Usually enough for a place in the world top ten |
| Over 900 | A supreme achievement that few reach and fewer sustain |
How all-rounders are rated
The all-rounder index uses one formula:
Batting points x Bowling points / 1,000
The ICC gives these examples:
| Batting points | Bowling points | All-rounder index |
|---|---|---|
| 800 | 0 | 0 |
| 600 | 200 | 120 |
| 400 | 400 | 160 |
The multiplication rewards balance. A great batter who does not bowl scores zero, because he or she is not a true all-rounder. An index of 300 or more is described as world class. Fielding is not counted.
Who is included, and for how long
- A player enters the rankings after the first match, but only the top 100 are published. A newcomer may need several matches before the name appears.
- To stay on the list, a player must have played within the qualifying period. This is normally 12 to 15 months for Tests and 9 to 12 months for ODIs and T20Is.
- A player who is dropped or injured keeps a rating that gradually shrinks while matches are missed.
- A player who confirms retirement from a format is removed from that format's list, but stays in the others. The ICC's example is MS Dhoni, who was removed from the Test rankings after retiring from Tests in 2014 and stayed in the ODI tables.
What if a player does not bat or bowl?
- A batter who plays but does not get to bat keeps the same rating. Rain or a top-order partnership is outside the player's control.
- A bowler who does not bowl is not penalised if the opposition is bowled out for under 150, since conditions clearly suited the other bowlers. If the opposition makes a big total, bowlers who did not bowl lose points.
Why wicket-keepers have no ranking
The ICC does not rate wicket-keepers or fielders. Its reasoning is that catches and stumpings depend heavily on the bowler creating the chance, and missed chances are not reliably recorded. Without a fair measure, it does not publish a table.
When the tables change
- Player rankings: weekly since March 2021. Women's ODI and T20I tables are updated on Tuesdays. Men's Test, ODI and T20I tables are updated on Wednesdays. Each update covers matches completed up to the previous day.
- Team rankings: after each Test series, and after each ODI and T20I.
- Annual update: all rankings are updated around 1 May each year. Positions can therefore change at that time even when no match has been played.
How to read rankings news
- A change of rank does not always mean a player did badly. Others may have gained more points that week.
- Compare ratings, not only ranks. The gap between first and second can be 2 points or 60.
- Rankings are separate from tournament standings. A league table in a World Cup or a championship follows that event's own points rules, not the ICC rankings.
For recent cricket coverage, read our report on India's win over Pakistan in the Asian Games 2026 cricket final.
Frequently asked questions
Who decides the ICC rankings?
Nobody votes on them. The ICC says each performance is valued by a pre-programmed algorithm using scorecard information, with no human intervention and no subjective assessment.
What is the highest possible ICC player rating?
Player ratings run on a scale from 0 to 1000. The ICC describes a rating above 900 as a supreme achievement that few players reach and fewer sustain.
How is the ICC all-rounder ranking calculated?
The all-rounder index is the player's batting points multiplied by bowling points, divided by 1,000. For example, 400 batting points and 400 bowling points give an index of 160.
When are the ICC rankings updated?
Since March 2021 the player rankings are updated weekly - women's tables on Tuesdays and men's tables on Wednesdays. Team rankings change after each Test series and after each ODI and T20I, and all tables get an annual update around 1 May.
Are wicket-keepers ranked by the ICC?
No. The ICC does not publish a wicket-keeping or fielding rating because it says there is no reliable statistical measure for them.
Does a player lose rating points when out of the team?
Yes, gradually. A player who misses matches keeps a rating that slowly shrinks, and drops off the list after the qualifying period passes without a match.
