'Ranking Doesn't Matter': Misbah-ul-Haq Claims Pakistan Rose to the Top by Beating Weak Teams

During a panel discussion, Misbah-ul-Haq, the former captain of Pakistan, made audacious claims that shocked the cricket world.

Misbah, one of the best captains in Pakistani cricket history, has never held back when expressing his candid, and frequently harsh, opinions.

This time, the former captain thinks that Pakistan's 2023 victory over New Zealand and Australia's third and fourth division teams made them the best ODI team in the world.

"Their C and D team arrived from New Zealand and Australia. On a YouTube channel, he said, "We defeated them and got more rating points.

He went on to say that when analyzing Pakistan's ascent to prominence, they should bear in mind the "actual" facts.

Misbah thought that the fact that even Australia's C team defeated Pakistan was concerning. The team, he continued, must assess their current situation realistically because they have been playing opponents of lower caliber.

Even though they are playing with their third-tier players, they are getting very near to us. It does not matter where you rank, Misbah said.

Wasim Akram, another legend from Pakistan, participated in the conversation and expressed the opinion that the team should only celebrate after dominating for a respectable amount of time. "After holding the top spot for at least six months, we ought to celebrate," Akram stated.

Following their 4-1 victory over New Zealand at home earlier this year, Pakistan rose to the top of the ODI rankings worldwide. In the annals of cricket, Pakistan had never before held the top rank in the ICC ODI rankings.

The show ran from April 27 to May 7 in the cities of Karachi and Rawalpindi.

A number of important players were absent for the Black Caps, including left-arm bowling specialist Trent Boult and star batter Devon Conway. As expected, all of New Zealand's players were removed at 94 runs in the opening game, which they lost by 88 runs.

Pakistan defeated the Black Caps in four straight One-Day Internationals, and similar outcomes persisted for the remainder of the series. In response, though, New Zealand won the fifth ODI by a score of 47 runs.

Australia was defeated 2-1 by Pakistan in the series that ended in 2022. Throughout the series, the Australians were without Steven Smith, David Warner, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, and Glenn Maxwell, among other key players.

Aaron Finch, a seasoned batsman from Australia, led the team against Pakistan. Australia's lone victory came in the first match of the series, defeating the hosts by 88 runs.

On October 6, Pakistan will take on the Netherlands in their ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 campaign.