Ashton Agar bursts into top five as Australia players make big moves

Agar was in splendid form against South Africa, picking up five wickets in the first game, including a hat-trick. He followed that up with three scalps in the third and final T20I as Australia secured a series victory.

Agar's haul of eight wickets propelled him six spots on the rankings, from No.10 to 4, while his team-mate, wrist-spinner Adam Zampa, jumped one spot to No.3 after finishing with five scalps for the series. Trailing closely at their heels was South Africa's Tabraiz Shamsi at No.5 after a three-spot rise.

David Warner, who finished with 128 runs from three innings, including two fifties, continued his rise up the batting rankings to No.18 from 25. His opening partner and Australia captain Aaron Finch remained the top-ranked batsman from the country, bridging the gap between him and second-ranked KL Rahul.

Steve Smith's T20I game has been on the rise since his return since his suspension in 2018. In six innings since then, he has scored 250 runs at an average of 83.33 while striking at 147.92. He was among the runs in the series against South Africa as well, scoring 104 at a strike-rate of 142.46 – a performance that helped him climb 25 spots to No.53 on the rankings.