Katherine Brunt tops the first release of new Women’s T20 Player Index

She was absent from the ICC Women’s World T20 2018 held in November through injury, but her performances across the past three years have been so strong that she still took the No.1 spot

Katherine Brunt has been confirmed as the world No.1 in the first release of the women’s edition of the T20 Player Index, which ranks players against their peers using both domestic and international performances.

The men’s T20 Player Index was released in February 2018 by FICA (the global player’s representative body), The Cricketer Magazine, and Cricket Archive.

It is an internationally recognised index which measures the performance of Twenty20 players against their fellow professionals across all major domestic T20 tournaments and T20 internationals.

Women’s cricket has grown significantly over the past few years, and the women’s edition of the T20 Player Index will now support this growth by providing the same intelligent system of measurement it provides for men’s cricket.

^{Australia win the ICC Women's World T20 2018}

Tony Irish, Executive Chairman of FICA, commented: “We are really proud and excited to launch the Women’s T20 Player Index on the back of the successful launch of the men’s Index earlier in the year. The women’s game is in a great position to continue to build on the momentum that has been created in recent years.

“The Index has been shaped by players and their representatives around the world. It includes both major domestic and international T20 performances, which reflects the way the player landscape is moving, and can help to drive narrative and further interest across the entire T20 calendar.”

Guy Evans-Tipping, Chief Executive of The Cricketer remarked: “Participation and interest in the women’s game has grown tremendously over the past few years, and it is important that the T20 Player Index keeps pace with this growth.

“We have been looking forward to releasing the women’s index for a number of months now, and I am delighted that the data sample is now large enough for it to happen.”

Brunt was absent from the ICC Women’s World T20 2018 held in November through injury, but her performances across the past three years have been so strong that she still took the No.1 spot with a tally of 751 points

^{Katherine Brunt has been confirmed as No.1}

Though the England allrounder is primarily known for her bowling, her valuable contributions with the bat have elevated her to the No.1 spot. She scored almost 1000 runs at a healthy strike rate of 116.8, and with a comparatively high proportion of those runs coming from boundaries

Brunt said: “I’ve had a pretty rough time recently both in my personal life and on the pitch so it’s nice to have some good news for a change! Being ranked number 1 in the Women’s T20 Player Index is something I feel really proud of, especially given the incredibly talented pool of players around the world at the moment.

"This is a great initiative for the women’s game and I’m sure the players will be inspired by the Index throughout the year.”

With the new season of the Women’s Big Bash League now underway, players should expect Ellyse Perry at No.2, or even Harmanpreet Kaur at No.3 who are on 747 and 740 points respectively, to overtake Brunt as she has not been released by England for the tournament.

ACCESS THE T20 PLAYER INDEX HERE