India’s Abhishek Sharma and Kuldeep Yadav earned nominations for the ICC Men’s Player of the Month award for September. Zimbabwe’s Brian Bennett was also nominated. In the women’s category, India’s Smriti Mandhana, Pakistan’s Sidra Amin, and South Africa’s Tazmin Brits made the shortlist.
Abhishek received his nomination for a brilliant performance during the Asia Cup in the UAE. He won the Player of the Series award. Kuldeep Yadav helped India secure key victories with his wicket-taking spells. Meanwhile, Bennett impressed selectors with consistent displays in several T20 series.
Smriti Mandhana being a good batsman in women cricketing, she won the Player of the Series award in the series of tour of Australia ODIs which made her a fine favorite. Sidra Amin was also the one to shine with some steady performances in the ODI series in Pakistan, and Tazmin Brits of South Africa also showed good performances and made her way to the top.
Men’s shortlist:
1. Abhishek Sharma (India)
Abhishek Sharma was on a sparkling show in the Asia Cup where he made 314 runs in seven matches at an average of 44.85 and a strike rate of 200. His blistering batting skills contributed to winning important matches that India played and also he scored a record 931 rating points in the ICC Men T20I Batting Leaders stage by the Super Fours.
2. Kuldeep Yadav (India)
Kuldeep Yadav took the most wickets in the Asia Cup, with 17 wickets from seven games. His overall grade was an average of 9.29 and economy rate 6.27. In the final against Pakistan, he had four wickets for 30. He also took four-for spells earlier in the tournament.
3. Brian Bennett (Zimbabwe)
Brian Bennett did an astounding job; he was consistent. He has scored 497 runs in nine T20Is, at an average of 55.22 at a strike rate of 165.66. He was Sri Lanka and Namibia’s top run-getter and carried on in fine form with 72, 65 and 111 in the T20 World Cup Africa Qualifiers.
Women’s shortlista:
1. Smriti Mandhana (India)
Smriti Mandhana was in the top form in the home ODI series against Australia. She scored a total of 308 runs in four matches at an average of 77 and a strike-rate of 135.68. She scored 58, 117 and 125 (including a 50-ball century) and was one of the series’ outstanding players.
2. Sidra Amin (Pakistan)
Sidra Ahmed had a dream game in ODI series against South Africa. She scored 293 runs in three matches without getting dismissed. Her scores 121, 122 and 50 were the highest at the top of the order, proving her to be the class act.
3. Tazmin Brits (South Africa)
Tazmin Brits contributed to the ODI series victory of South Africa against Pakistan through 101 and 171 scored in the first and second matches respectively. Her active and hitting power was rewarded with a Player of the Series award as she managed to help South Africa win the series 2-1.
The ultimate winners shall be determined by ICC Voting Academy and the world fans. Visitors can also use the official site of the ICC to vote their favorite male and female performers of the month.
