Finance
Suryakumar Yadav of India was named one of four nominees for the ICC Men’s T20I cricketer of the year 2022 award on Thursday.
Other nominees include England’s left-arm pace all-rounder Sam Curran, Zimbabwe’s off-spin all-rounder Sikandar Raza, and Pakistan’s wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan.
Suryakumar had a fantastic 2022 in the shortest format of the game, becoming only the second batter in the format to score more than 1000 runs in a year with his 360-degree strokeplay. He finished the year as the leading run-scorer, with 1164 runs scored at a ridiculous strike rate of 187.43 and an average of 46.56.
By a wide margin, his tally of 68 sixes in 2022 is the most in a single year in the format. Suryakumar was the standout men’s T20I batter of the year, with two hundred and nine half-centuries.
Suryakumar had blazed through the Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia, slamming 239 runs at an exceptional average of 59.75 and a whopping strike rate of 189.68, including match-changing fifties against South Africa, Zimbabwe, and the Netherlands.
He hit 11 fours and seven sixes all over the park at a strike rate of 217.65 in the second T20I against New Zealand at Mount Maunganui to go unbeaten on 111 off 51 balls, his second T20I century.
However, it was his first T20I century against England at Trent Bridge in Nottingham, 117 off 55 balls, that drew the attention of cricket fans. Suryakumar lifted India from 31/3 in a run chase of 216 with his incredible stroke-making, giving the visitors a chance to chase down the target. Suryakumar put the team within striking distance of an incredible victory.
Raza of Zimbabwe had a fantastic year with the bat and also contributed significantly with the ball in T20Is. The Zimbabwe all-outstanding rounder’s performance in the T20 World Cup in Australia capped off a memorable year.
In the year, he scored 735 runs at a strike rate of over 150 and took 25 wickets at an excellent economy rate of 6.13. His standout performance came in Zimbabwe’s surprise T20 World Cup victory over Pakistan, when he took 3/25 with the ball before inflicting the run out on the final ball to give Zimbabwe a heart-stopping one-run victory.
Curran was named Tournament Player of the 2022 T20 World Cup. His bowling stocks in T20s increased during the tournament, with his death bowling in particular earning praise. With England missing key fast bowlers, Curran rose to the occasion admirably, finishing the World Cup with 13 wickets, second only to Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga.
His best figures of 5-10 against Afghanistan in the tournament were the first by any England bowler in men’s T20Is. The left-arm quick made up for missing the tournament in 2021 due to a back injury with a three-wicket haul in the final, which proved crucial in England winning their second T20 World Cup title.
Curran conceded only 12 runs in four overs while taking three wickets in the final against Pakistan in Melbourne. He was also named Player of the Final for his 3/12, with victims including Mohammad Rizwan, Shan Masood, and Mohammad Nawaz as Pakistan only managed 137 runs, a total England easily beat with an over to spare.
Rizwan scored 996 runs this year, building on his record-breaking year in T20Is in 2021. In T20Is in 2022, he hit ten half-centuries and finished with 175 runs, the joint-most by a Pakistan batter. Rizwan improved his reputation as a high-quality anchor at the top of Pakistan’s batting order in 2022, averaging 45.27 in T20Is.
Rizwan also briefly held the top spot in the Men’s T20I Player Rankings for batters in 2022. He finishes the year ranked second with 836 rating points, trailing India’s Suryakumar.
Rizwan’s best performance came in the lead-up to the T20 World Cup, when he scored an unbeaten 88 off just 51 balls for Pakistan scaled a 200-plus target without the loss of a wicket.
Source:OCN
