Samuels, Narine top ODI rankings

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, CMC – Veteran batsman Marlon Samuels and off-spinner Sunil Narine are the highest ranked West Indies players in the latest ICC One-Day International rankings released at the weekend.

The 36-year-old Samuels lies 28th in the batting rankings while Narine sits third in the bowling rankings.

Samuels last featured for West Indies in the three-match series against Pakistan last September/October, gathering 116 runs at an average of 38, as the Caribbean side lost all three matches in the United Arab Emirates.

He subsequently pulled out of the Tri-Nations Series against Sri Lanka and hosts Zimbabwe the following month, opting rather to play in the Bangladesh Premier League.

Left-hander Darren Bravo, who was sent home from the Tri-Nations because of disciplinary reasons, is the next highest ranked Windies batsman at 47th. He and Samuels are the only two Caribbean players in the top 50.

Australian stroke-maker David Warner tops the rankings followed by South Africa’s AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli of India.

Narine, meanwhile, has slipped to third in the bowling rankings with South Africa leg-spinner Imran Tahir assuming the top spot for the first time.

Narine played in the Pakistan series last year with little success and then withdrew from the Tri-Nations Series for personal reasons.

He has, however, not played in the ongoing Regional Super50 – the Caribbean’s premier domestic 50-overs tournament which serves as an eligibility requirement for West Indies ODI selection.

Captain and seamer Jason Holder is ranked 15th but he and Narine are the only two Windies bowlers in the top 50.

West Indies players will have the chance to enhance their standing as the rankings are set to be revised by the ICC immediately following England’s three-match ODI series in the Caribbean next month.