Ravi Bishnoi ‘feeling out of the world’ after becoming No. 1 T20I bowler: Will try and hold on to the spot

Young Indian leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi was ‘feeling out of the world’ after becoming the No.1 bowler in the latest ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings. Bishnoi added that he had never dreamed of becoming World No.1, but now he wants to keep giving match-winning performances and hold onto the number one ranking.

The leg-spinner was recently named Player of the Series after India’s 4-1 series victory over Australia on home soil, and he has 34 wickets from 21 T20I matches since making his debut against the West Indies in February 2022.

“It is an out-of-the-world feeling. To become the number one bowler, I never dreamed of this. Now that I’m there, I’m feeling good about it and I hope to continue performing for the team and helping the team win,” Bishnoi said in a video posted by BCCI.

Bishnoi only made his international debut at the beginning of last year against the West Indies, but his consistent performances for his country have propelled the 23-year-old to the top of the updated standings.

“I debuted on February 15 and the journey has had its ups and downs but the last 1-1.5 years have been good since I got to play some good games, played in the Asian Games and Asia Cup as well,” Bishnoi added.

Bishnoi’s rise to the top has not come as a surprise, with the leg-spinner first catching the eye in South Africa at the ICC Men’s Under 19 Cricket World Cup in 2020, where he finished with the most wickets (17) of any player as India finished runners-up to fellow Asian side Bangladesh. Despite being below Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, and Ravichandran Ashwin in the spin pecking order of India’s star-studded line-up, Bishnoi has always performed admirably when given the chance, and his economy rate of 7.14 is amongst the best for the current crop of Indian bowlers.

“It has been that I got opportunities and when I do I hope to play well. This is more of the efforts from the last five years coming to fruition. Now after that, it has been good so far and I am enjoying it,” Bishnoi further said.