India have retained their position at the top of the ICC men’s ODI team rankings after the annual update, but their lead over New Zealand has reduced from eight to five points.

After the update, India has dropped to 118 rating points from 119, while New Zealand has moved up two points to 113. Reigning ODI World Cup champions Australia are at third place with an unchanged rating of 109.

The only change in the top 10 is South Africa moving ahead of Pakistan to fourth position. South Africa now has 102 points, while Pakistan has slipped to fifth place with 98 points. With this update, the gap between ninth-placed Bangladesh and West Indies has also increased and now there is a difference of 10 rating points between the two teams.

Further down the table, Ireland have overtaken Zimbabwe into 11th, the United States have moved above Scotland into 13th, and the United Arab Emirates are now 19th, ahead of Canada.

The annual update reflects the results over a continuous period and underlines India’s consistency in the 50-over format. The Rohit Sharma-led side has been one of the most impressive ODI teams in recent years and continues to hold on to the top despite a slight dip in their rating points.

India’s capture of the No. 1 ranking comes at a time when the team is preparing for a new ODI cycle ahead of the 2027 World Cup in South Africa. The upcoming three-match ODI series against Afghanistan is expected to serve as a starting point for those preparations.

However, India has already suffered major setbacks before the series. All-rounder after Virat Kohli’s exit Hardik Pandya has also been sidelined Due to injury. Sources told India Today that Pandya is recovering from a quadriceps injury and is expected to take around three weeks to regain full fitness.

The injury dates back to IPL 2026, where Pandya was leading Mumbai Indians. The all-rounder featured in only 10 matches before missing the latter stages of the tournament due to fitness concerns.

The ODI series against Afghanistan will begin in Dharamsala on June 14, before moving to Lucknow on June 17 and Chennai on June 20. With senior players unavailable, the series could provide an opportunity for several young players to stake their claim in India’s ODI setup.

India’s updated ODI squad against Afghanistan: Shubman Gill (captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Nitish Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar and Harsh Dubey.

India’s dominance is not limited to the ODI format. They also top the ICC men’s T20I team rankings after the annual update conducted last week. Meanwhile, Australia top the ICC Men’s Test Team Rankings and are also ranked No. 1 in both Women’s ODI and Women’s T20I.

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