F.P. Report
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s left-arm spinner Sadia Iqbal was named among other players in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Women’s Player of the Month awards from November’s international contests. Bangladesh left arm spinner Nahida Akter celebrates her second successive nomination for the Women’s Player of the Month after more wicket-taking heroics in her side’s ODI series triumph against Pakistan.
Compatriot Fargana Hoque joins her on the shortlist after starring with the bat, notching valuable runs in the second and third encounters. The final name on the list is Pakistan’s Sadia, nominated for the first time thanks to her economical spells and an impressive performance in the first match.
Sadia was among the wickets once more during Pakistan’s visit to Bangladesh. Despite falling short of series victory, Iqbal impressed with economical wicket taking spells in the early exchanges, said a press release. The first match was a particular highlight for the 28-year-old, her nine overs going for 13 runs with four wickets falling. This Player of the Match display was followed by another two wicket-haul, and Iqbal ended the month with six wickets at 12.50 and an economy rate of 2.58.
Nahida was named on the shortlist for the second successive month after her performances guided Bangladesh to a 2-1 victory over Pakistan in Mirpur.
Nominated in October for her T20I endeavours, this time she conquered in ODIs – Akter winning the Player of the Series award with seven wickets across the three matchups at an average of 14.14, taking three for 30 in the first match and three for 26 in the decisive final fixture.
Meanwhile, with 110 runs in the victorious ODI series, Fargana Hoque earned her inaugural nomination for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month. The opener played a key role in levelling the series with a valuable 40 runs in the second outing in addition to a catch and a run out in the field as Bangladesh won in the Super Over.
The series was won when Hoque top-scored in the third match with a controlled score of 62 to chase down the target and seal the triumph.
Meanwhile Men’s Player of the Month shortlist features two of Australia’s key performers as they secured their sixth Men’s Cricket World Cup crown, and one of India’s record-breaking strike bowlers.
Travis Head wrote himself into World Cup legend during November courtesy of two match-winning performances in the semi-final and final of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup to earn his first nomination since June. Similarly, Glenn Maxwell grabbed the headlines with an unforgettable innings to seal qualification through to the knockout stages. Completing the lineup of nominees is India’s Mohammed Shami, whose inspired bowling performances saw India blitz their opponents on the way to the final.
Head was nominated for the Men’s Player of the Month for the first time since his match-winning contributions helped Australia clinch the ICC World Test Championship Final in June. A similar story unfolded in India, culminating in two Player of the Match performances in the knockout stages. South Africa were thwarted by Head’s brilliance with bat and ball in the semi-final in Kolkata; the spinner taking the key wickets of Heinrich Klaasen and Marco Jansen before top scoring with 62 in 48 balls in the thrilling chase.
His crowning glory however came in Ahmedabad. Staring at 241 for victory, Head hit a sparkling 137 in 120 balls to see his side home at a canter amid jubilant celebrations.
The Australian veteran (Glenn Maxwell) was shortlisted for the first time after a prolific November, which included arguably one of the great World Cup performances against Afghanistan in Mumbai. Chasing down 292 for victory after being 91 for seven, Maxwell smashed 31 boundaries in his unbeaten 201 to seal Australia’s safe passage to the knockout stages.
Fast forward to the final, and Maxwell again made key contributions, bowling a disciplined spell and removing the threat of Rohit Sharma before hitting the winning runs. Not done there, Maxwell also starred in the subsequent T20I matches against India, hitting 104 not out in 48 balls in the third encounter in Guwahati.
Shami topped the wicket-taking charts at the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, and led India’s bowling attack in fine fashion with a number of scintillating displays during the month.
He started November with a Player of the Match performance against Sri Lanka in Mumbai, tearing through their batting lineup with sterling figures of five for 18. His highlight came in the semi-final victory over New Zealand though, where the pacer took seven wickets for 57 runs, booking the home team’s ticket to the Final. During the calendar month, Shami took 15 wickets at a remarkable average of 12.06. (APP)
