The Aporia · Abrar Ahmed rises to No. 1 in ICC T20I bowling rankings

Abrar Ahmed of Pakistan has reached number one in the ICC Men’s T20I bowling rankings, surpassing Afghanistan's Rashid Khan after Rashid dropped one point behind him. This makes Abrar only the fifth Pakistani bowler ever to top this list. He boasts 133 international wickets across formats and recently helped Pakistan win a three-match series against Australia in January and February with six wickets. Ahmed attributes his success to improving consistency and aims to continue performing well for Pakistan, including at the upcoming Asian Games where he is part of the squad preparing in Karachi.

Written by AI on 2026-09-23, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

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Pakistan's Abrar Ahmed has risen to the top spot in the ICC Men’s T20I bowling rankings for the first time in his career, surpassing Afghanistan's Rashid Khan, who had held the position for six months. Ahmed achieved this milestone after taking 15 wickets in nine T20Is for Pakistan this year, including a notable performance against Australia where he took six wickets and helped Pakistan win the series 3-0 in January and February. The 28-year-old spinner is now only the fifth Pakistani bowler to reach number one in T20I rankings, following Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Imad Wasim, and Shahid Afridi. Ahmed has accumulated a total of 133 international wickets across his career, which includes appearances in 10 Tests, 19 ODIs, and 38 T20Is. He expressed that becoming world number one was a long-held ambition since he started playing cricket.

Written for “ICC Bowling Rankings Update” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

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The Karachi-born right-arm mystery spinner has featured in nine T20Is for Pakistan this year and taken 15 wickets, including six in the three-match home series against Australia, which Pakistan won 3-0 in January and February.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-23

🔮 I will continue working hard to achieve more success and win more matches for Pakistan.”

2026-09-23 · Dawn

Abrar Ahmed rises to No. 1 in ICC T20I bowling rankings · assertive framing

Pakistan’s Abrar Ahmed has risen to the top of the ICC Men’s T20I bowling rankings for the first time in his career, ending Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan’s six-month reign at No. 1. asserted

Ahmed → rise → .

Abrar moved to the summit after Rashid slipped one rating point behind the Pakistan spinner’s tally of 736 following an unimpressive outing against India. asserted

Rashid → move → India

The 28-year-old became only the fifth Pakistan bowler to top the T20I bowling rankings, following Umar Gul, Saeed Ajmal, Imad Wasim and Shahid Afridi. asserted

old → become → Gul

Abrar, who has played 10 Tests, 19 ODIs and 38 T20Is for Pakistan, has taken 133 international wickets. asserted

who → play → wickets

He is also ranked second in the ODI bowling rankings, 39 rating points behind Rashid, who occupies the top position in that format. asserted

who → rank → format

Pakistan → bear → January

Abrar said the achievement fulfilled a long-held ambition of his. asserted

achievement → say → his

“When you start playing cricket, you have only one dream to represent Pakistan. asserted

you → start → Pakistan

Once you achieve that, the next dream is to become world number one,” he was quoted as saying by the Pakistan Cricket Board’s digital platform. asserted

he → achieve → platform

“I feel very proud to become the world number one bowler while representing Pakistan. asserted

I → feel → Pakistan

I will continue working hard to achieve more success and win more matches for Pakistan.” asserted

I → continue → Pakistan

Abrar said improving his consistency had been a particular focus of his work. asserted

improving → say → work

“In the past, I had variations in my bowling, but consistency was an area I needed to improve. asserted

I → have → bowling

I worked hard on my consistency and that work has helped me improve a lot,” he said. asserted

he → work → consistency

He is currently with Pakistan’s Asian Games squad, which is undergoing a four-day training camp in Karachi ahead of the competition in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan. asserted

which → undergo → Nagoya

“My aim is to perform well and help my team win matches and return to Pakistan with a gold medal,” Abrar said. asserted

Abrar → perform → medal

Abrar Ahmed rises to No. 1 in ICC T20I bowling rankings

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