Russell stays put at Player Performance Index summit as CPL heads towards its finale

Andre Russell, the West Indies allrounder, now holds a 23-point lead over his nearest rival Sunil Narine in the standings - a definitive list of the best T20 players around the world

^{Jamaica Tallawahs star Andre Russell}

Andre Russell has consolidated his lead at the top of the Player Performance Index and Caribbean Premier League Index.

Russell, the West Indies allrounder, now holds a 23-point lead over his nearest rival Sunil Narine in the standings - a definitive list of the best T20 players around the world compiled using a complex formula that allows for an accurate comparison of batsmen and bowlers’ performances over a three-year cycle.

With the CPL entering its knockout stages, and given Narine has had a relatively quiet tournament by his own high standards, Russell is heading out further in front.

His total of 862 points is more than 100 higher than the two men who occupy joint third in the CPL standings - Dwayne Bravo and Shoaib Malik. In the global equivalent, Glenn Maxwell holds third spot by himself, with Rashid Khan and Shane Watson making up the rest of the top five.

Lower down the CPL list, the leading runscorer in the 2018 competition - Colin Munro - has not managed to move higher than eighth despite his 470 runs in the tournament. The hard-hitting New Zealander has also slipped a place in the worldwide standings, from 23rd to 24th.

There are three new entries into the CPL top 50, including Colin Ingram (16th), Ish Sodhi (22nd) and Tabraiz Shamsi (38th), who all made their 2018 debuts in the past week.

But the big mover, thanks to his exploits in this year’s competition, is leading wicket-taker Fawad Ahmed. The spinner, with 17 victims to his name so far, has risen a whopping 62 places in the Index - from 236th to 174th - off the back of his performances to date. He is now 44th in the CPL Index.

Another man making strides in the global Index thanks to his displays in the Caribbean Premier League is Trinbago Knight Riders fast bowler Khary Pierre.

Pierre, the only bowler to have bowled five or more overs in the current edition of the CPL with an economy rate of less than six, is up to 67th in the tournament standings and has broken into the world’s top 500.