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Star India cricketer Smriti Mandhana continues to top the ODI batting charts though the charismatic batter's lead has reduced following two underwhelming performances in the ongoing ICC Women's World Cup in India and Sri Lanka. Mandhana, with 791 rating points, is 60 points ahead of England's Nat Sciver-Brunt. The Indian, who smashed consecutive centuries in the three-match WODI series against Australia just before the World Cup, has contributed 8 against Sri Lanka and 23 versus Pakistan in the showpiece event. Australia's beth Mooney occupies the third spot with 713 rating points. South Africa's Tazmin Brits (706) and Australia's Ashleigh Gardner (697) have made substantial gains following World Cup centuries against New Zealand to move up to fourth and fifth spots respectively and close the gap on Mandhana. While Tazmin rose two places, Gardner gained seven spots to reach a new career high. New Zealand skipper Sophie Devine too has jumped seven spots to eighth, while Pakistan left-hander Sidra Amin has also equalled her career-best ranking of 10th following her 81 against India in Colombo on Saturday. England's Sophie Ecclestone is leading the latest bowling charts with 792 rating points, while spinner Deepti Sharma (640) is the only Indian in the top-10 at No.6, having dropped a spot.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) could lower its benchmark repo rate by another 25 basis points to 5.25% in December 2025, despite recent signals from Governor Sanjay Malhotra suggesting limited monetary policy space, according to a report by BMI, a Fitch Solutions company.In its latest report titled “Reserve Bank of India Not Done Easing in 2025”, BMI said it expects inflation and growth to fall short of the RBI’s projections, creating room for another rate cut this year. The RBI had already surprised markets in June with a larger-than-expected 50-basis-point reduction, bringing the repo rate down to 5.5%.“Despite Governor Sanjay Malhotra seemingly closing the door on further rate cuts in the coming months, we expect another 25bps in December 2025,” the report stated.Also Read: World Bank raises India’s FY26 growth forecast to 6.5%, cites tariff risks aheadFurthermore, BMI said that India’s real policy rate will remain high, even with an additional cut, at around 2.5%, underscoring that “the current stance is overly restrictive relative to economic conditions.”Inflation and growth outlookBMI forecasts consumer inflation to average 3.0% in FY26, below both the RBI’s 3.7% estimate and its 4.0% medium-term target. "Multiple factors, including declining global commodity prices, beneficial weather conditions supporting agricultural output, weakening domestic demand pressures and limited wage growth despite tighter labour markets, will ensure that inflation remains well within the RBI's target 2.0-6.0% range." <iframe src="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/dynamicchart?tab=RETINF&year=10" width="100%" height="520" frameborder="0" scrolling="yes" border="0"></iframe>On the growth front, BMI projects India’s GDP to expand by 6.0% in FY2025–26, lower than the RBI’s 6.5% estimate, suggesting that economic activity remains weaker than policymakers acknowledge. “We expect Q3 2025 data to reveal economic weakness more pronounced than currently recognised by policymakers, justifying the additional cut we anticipate in December following a likely pause inAugust,” the report added.<iframe src="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/dynamicchart?tab=GDP&year=10" width="100%" height="520" frameborder="0" scrolling="yes" border="0"></iframe>Global yield differentials and rupee outlookThe report notes that by the end of 2025, the RBI would have eased policy by 125 basis points, compared with a 50-basis-point reduction by the US Federal Reserve. As a result, BMI expects bond yield differentials to move in favour of the US dollar in the coming months.BMI highlighted that the rupee has already fallen 2.3% against the dollar since July 1, trading around ₹87.5 per USD as of August 28. The depreciation was partly attributed to the impact of Donald Trump’s tariff measures on India.However, the report added that investor confidence in the US has also been shaken by “Trump’s erratic policymaking” and concerns over the independence of the Federal Reserve, tempering the dollar’s strength. BMI now expects the rupee to weaken slightly to ₹89.5 per USD by end-2025.