DUBAI, Dec 29:
Indian fast bowler Arshdeep Singh has received a nomination for the ICC Men’s T20I Cricketer of the Year award after a remarkable season where he was the joint highest wicket-taker and played a crucial role in India’s T20 World Cup victory.
The 25-year-old will contend for this esteemed accolade against Pakistan’s Babar Azam, Australia’s Travis Head, and Zimbabwe’s Sikandar Raza, all distinguished performers this year.
Stylish Indian opener Smriti Mandhana is also in the running for an ICC award, having been nominated for ICC Women’s ODI Cricketer of the Year due to her exceptional performances in international cricket.
Other notable contenders for this award include Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa), Chamari Athapaththu (Sri Lanka), and Annabel Sutherland (Australia).
Singh, a left-arm seamer, was instrumental in India’s T20 World Cup win in Barbados. He concluded the year as the joint highest wicket-taker in T20Is with 36 wickets in 18 matches, boasting an impressive average of 13.5.
His total was the second highest for an Indian pacer in T20Is within a calendar year, just shy of Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s record of 37 wickets in 2022.
During the T20 World Cup, Singh claimed 17 wickets, tying with Afghanistan’s Fazalhaq Farooqi for the most in the tournament.
A standout moment for him came in the final match when he took the crucial wickets of Aiden Markram and Quinton de Kock early on, disrupting South Africa’s chase of 177. In the tense 19th over, he allowed only four runs, raising the required run rate and paving the way for India’s triumph.
Mandhana, a left-handed opener, accumulated 743 runs in 12 innings at an impressive average of 61.91 and a strike rate of 96.99, while also taking a wicket in an outstanding season.
The 28-year-old notched up two centuries in June against South Africa in Bengaluru, kicking off her 2024 season before adding two more hundreds later in the year, maintaining her excellent form through December.
She totaled 343 runs across three innings during a Player of the Series performance against South Africa in June. Her third century came in the final match of India’s home series against New Zealand, right after the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. (PTI)
Another century was recorded in the final match of her team’s three-game series against Australia in December, although this effort was in vain as Australia completed a series sweep with a 3-0 victory.
Mandhana’s best overall performance happened in the second match of India’s home series against South Africa, where she scored a century and secured a pivotal wicket to lead her team to a narrow four-wicket win.
The ICC Awards 2024 winners will be unveiled in late January 2025. (PTI)
