Finance
For the second year in a row, India’s legendary hitter Suryakumar Yadav has been named the ICC Men’s T20I Cricketer of the Year. Hayley Matthews, the captain of the West Indies all-round team, was declared the ICC Women’s T20I Cricketer of the Year.
Additionally, Suryakumar was selected as the 2023 ICC Men’s T20I team captain. Suryakumar dominated run-scoring in the shortest format in 2023 with 733 runs at an average of 48.86 and strike-rate of 155.95 in 17 T20I innings. To win the coveted title, he defeated rivals Alpesh Ramjani of Uganda, Sikandar Raza of Zimbabwe, and Mark Chapman of New Zealand.
His first T20I knock of the year was a mere seven against Sri Lanka, but he shined in the next two matches with scores of 51 (36) and 112 not out (51) in Pune and Rajkot respectively. An innings of 83 (44) against the West Indies in Providence, Guyana, in August was followed by a knock of 61 (45) in Lauderhill, Florida, USA.
Suryakumar also went on to take the T20I leadership role of a young India side towards the end of the year. He made half-centuries against Australia (80 off 42 balls) and South Africa (56 from 36 balls), before posting a century off just 56 balls in India’s final T20I of the year in Johannesburg.
“I am thrilled to win the ICC Men’s T20I Cricketer of the Year award for a second time. Winning back-to-back awards for my performances in this format is something I could only dream about when I made my international debut. I have put my heart and soul into playing for my country and to see my efforts rewarded with such a prestigious honour is very humbling.
“Congratulations are due to my fellow nominees on their excellent performances in 2023. I’d like to thank my teammates and support staff for giving me the platform to succeed, and I want to also extend my gratitude to fans and voters worldwide for allowing me to celebrate this accolade.
“I hope that I can continue this success alongside my teammates for what will be a huge year of T20I cricket ahead, with the Men’s T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies just around the corner,” said Suryakumar in an ICC statement.
However, Hayley also finished first on the run-scoring rankings for the year, matching Suryakumar’s record of 700 runs at a strike rate of 132.32 in 14 games. She also used her off-spin bowling to take 19 wickets at an average of 16.21.
Her incredible undefeated 99 in the opening series match against Australia was eclipsed by her incredible 132 in a 213-run chase in Sydney. Hayley broke multiple records in the process of breaking the global record in the women’s T20I run-chase, including the record for the highest individual score.
Hayley staved off close competition from Sri Lanka captain Chamari Athapaththu, Australia all-rounder Ellyse Perry and England left-arm spinner Sophie Ecclestone. “I’ve been pretty blessed to have a good year wearing the West Indies colours, performing really well and helping the team.”
“This is one of those awards that I’m going to cherish forever and knowing that it can make our West Indies fans home in the Caribbean and around the world happy is what motivates me to go out there and do my best,” said Hayley.
Her series total of 310 runs against Australia is the highest of any player in a bilateral women’s T20I series. Notably, Hayley had earned eight straight Player of the Match honors. She had also won two from the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup matches in South Africa against Pakistan and Ireland, and all three from a previous series in Ireland.
Source:IANS
