Tendulkar tops the ICC ODI batsmen rankings

Dubai, Mar 5 (UNI) Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar's match-winning performances against Australia in the finals of the CB series helped him jump ten places to top the ICC Player Rankings for ODI batsmen.

Tendulkar, who scored 399 runs in the series Down Under scored an unbeaten 117 in the first final whereas he made a gutsy 91 in the second final at Brisbane yesterday.

The 34-year-old batsman had entered the series in eighth place on 736 points and after battling the ups and downs during a keenly contested series, finished on 777 points to lead Australian captain Ricky Ponting by seven points who is at second spot.

The little master regaind his top spot after a long wait of almost three-and-a-half years which he last spearheaded in August 2004 during the series against Sri Lanka in Colombo.

However, Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni dropped one place to 10th while Yuvraj Singh and Gautam Gambhir, too, dropped a place each at 18th and 27th place respectively.

India's Rohit Sharma moved 21 places to 88th position and Australia's James Hopes jumped 11 places to 99th spot.

In the ODI bowlers' list, Harbhajan Singh improved three places to 18th spot to become India's only representative in that group while man of the match in the second final of the CB series Praveen Kumar climbed 47 places to 75th and Irfan Pathan slipped six places to 36th position.

Australia's Adam Gilchrist signed off in sixth place while Matthew Hayden, too, moved in right direction to finish the series at the eighth position.

The bowlers list is still headed by New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori with Player of the Series Nathan Bracken in second place, 20 points behind.

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