Pakistan have climbed to fourth in the ICC ODI rankings in the update released on 2 November 2026, rising to 104 rating points and drawing level with third-placed South Africa. The rise follows the weekend’s tri-series triumph in Lahore, where Pakistan beat Sri Lanka in the final, as we reported in our coverage of Fakhar Zaman’s century and the record-equalling run chase. In the mid-October snapshot Pakistan sat fifth on 100 points, so the new table is a genuine step up, and it pushes Australia down to fifth.
- New position: 4th, on 104 points from 37 matches (3,838 points)
- Level with: South Africa, 3rd on 104 points from 34 matches (3,547 points)
- Previous position: 5th, on 100 points in the 15 October table
- How it happened: four wins in five matches at the Lahore tri-series
Level With South Africa in the ICC ODI Rankings
The displayed table shows Pakistan and South Africa locked together on 104 points, and the finer figures explain why South Africa keep third place for now. Ratings are calculated to decimal places before they are rounded for publication: South Africa’s underlying figure is 104.324, Pakistan’s is 103.730, so the Proteas stay fractionally ahead despite the identical headline number. The direction of travel is all Pakistan’s, though. Midway through the tri-series, The News already had Pakistan up to fourth on 103 points after an 87-run win over England in which Arafat Minhas scored 59 and took six wickets for 40. The final then supplied the last push, and the gap to third is now small enough to close with one more good series.
The Series That Did the Damage
Rankings points are earned match by match, and Pakistan collected them in a bunch in Lahore. The hosts won four of their five matches in the tri-series, and the final on 31 October was the performance of the tournament: chasing 326 against Sri Lanka, Pakistan got home by three wickets with nine balls to spare, equalling the record for a successful chase of that size. Fakhar Zaman’s 127 from 99 balls, with 11 fours and six sixes, set the chase up, Saad Baig added 74, and Arafat Minhas finished the job with 61 from just 31 balls. Beating higher-rated opponents in a tournament final is exactly the kind of result the ratings system rewards most, which is why a single home series moved Pakistan past Australia.
Photo: Farrah Zakir, via Wikimedia Commons
How the Top Ten Looks Now
The updated ICC ODI rankings have India clear at the top on 115 points, with New Zealand second on 109. Behind the tied pair of South Africa and Pakistan come Australia on 102, and then a notable climber: Afghanistan, sixth on 94 points, the highest position in their history. Sri Lanka are seventh, also on 94, England eighth on 93, Bangladesh ninth on 81 and the West Indies tenth on 79. For Pakistan, the table confirms a recovery built over the past year, from fifth on 98 points in the annual May update to fourth now, with third place in touching distance.
- 1. India, 115 points
- 2. New Zealand, 109 points
- 3. South Africa, 104 points
- 4. Pakistan, 104 points
- 5. Australia, 102 points
- 6. Afghanistan, 94 points
What Fourth Place Means Now
A higher ranking is more than a line in a table. It shapes seedings and scheduling, and it is a fair measure of momentum a year out from the 2027 World Cup, which South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia will host from October to November 2027. Pakistan’s one-day side now has a settled core, a match-winning opener in form, and young all-rounders such as Arafat Minhas deciding big games. The home season rolls on, too: Pakistan’s squash stars are in action this week at the Asian Team Squash Championships in Islamabad, and in the shortest format Shaheen Shah Afridi’s T20I wicket record keeps growing. If the one-day side holds this level, their ICC ODI rankings climb may not be finished yet.
Sources
- The Sports Encounter: Pakistan, South Africa Level at 104 in Latest ODI Rankings, 3 November 2026
- Wisden: ICC Men’s ODI Team Rankings, Updated Table After Pakistan Clinch the Tri-Series
- ICC: Men’s ODI Team Rankings, Official Table
- Featured image: Shaheen Shah Afridi celebrates with his Pakistan teammates during the home ODI season. Photo: PCB, via The News
- In-body image: Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore. Photo: Farrah Zakir, via Wikimedia Commons
Umar Farooq is the founder and editor of Good News Pakistan. An engineer by profession and a writer by passion, he started the site in December 2022 to share good news from Pakistan, and has since written and edited more than 200 articles about its people, sports, science, business and world records. He believes the story of Pakistan is bigger than its headlines, and that good news, told honestly, is worth telling every day.