September 5th 2024.
The International Cricket Council made an exciting announcement on Thursday, revealing the nominees for the prestigious ICC Player of the Month awards for both men and women. The list includes talented players from Ireland, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and the West Indies, all of whom have shown outstanding performances on the field.
For the men's award, the shortlist includes South Africa's spin master Keshav Maharaj, West Indies' fast bowler Jayden Seales, and Sri Lanka's all-rounder Dunith Wellalage. Maharaj, who previously won the award in April 2022, was the standout player in the two Test matches against the West Indies, taking an impressive 13 wickets. In the first match, he took four wickets in each innings, including three of the top four batters, and followed it up with five wickets in the second match, which his team won by 40 runs.
Seales, the young new-ball bowler from the West Indies, also had a remarkable series against South Africa, taking 12 wickets, including nine in the second match. This performance propelled him to the 13th position in the ICC Men's Test Bowling Rankings and made him the top-ranked bowler in the West Indies. Meanwhile, Wellalage's outstanding performance in the ODI series against India earned him a spot on the men's shortlist. He was named Player of the Series after scoring 67 not out, 39, and two, and taking seven wickets, including a five-wicket haul.
On the other hand, the women's shortlist features Sri Lanka's batter Harshitha Samarawickrama, Ireland's all-rounder Orla Prendergast, and Ireland's opener Gaby Lewis. Samarawickrama has been in fantastic form, carrying her impressive performance from the Asia Cup into the tour of Ireland. In the two T20Is played in Dublin, she scored a total of 151 runs with a strike rate of 169.66, and in the three ODIs played in Belfast, she scored 172 runs with a strike rate of 82.69. Her highlight was a match-winning 86 not out in the first T20I and a century in the second ODI, becoming only the third Sri Lanka woman to achieve this feat.
Prendergast was the star of Ireland's ODI series win against Sri Lanka, scoring a spectacular 122 not out in the first match and taking three wickets and two catches to be named Player of the Match. She also contributed with scores of 29 and 38 in the two T20Is. Lewis, who had a fantastic series against Zimbabwe, scored a total of 158 runs in two T20Is, including a magnificent 119 in the second match, which is the highest individual score for Ireland in the format. Unfortunately, she sustained a quad injury and was unable to play the last two matches of the series.
It is an exciting time for cricket fans as they eagerly wait for the winners to be announced. The ICC Player of the Month awards recognize the outstanding performances of players and celebrate their contributions to the game. We can't wait to see who takes home the prestigious awards for the month of August.
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