Sports Bulletin Report
Dubai (UAE): England captain Jos Buttler claims the ICC Men’s Player of the Month award after being at his remarkable best with the bat in his side’s charge to T20 World Cup triumph in Australia last month, while Pakistan opening batter Sidra Ameen is named ICC Women’s Player of the Month for posting mammoth scores in the recent successful ODI series against Ireland on home soil.
Buttler and Ameen secure the awards following a global vote conducted among media representatives, ICC Hall of Famers, former international players, and fans registered at icc-cricket.com.
England’s triumphant skipper Buttler once again underlined his reputation as one of the most fearsome batters in world cricket last month. November started with a Player of the Match performance in the dramatic 20-run victory over New Zealand in Brisbane. Making his 100th T20I appearance, the opener smashed 73 from 47 balls to provide some much-needed momentum to England’s campaign.
After England had secured their passage to the knockout stages, he followed this display with arguably his highlight of the tournament. Chasing 169 for victory in the semi-final against India, he demonstrated the full array of his strokeplay in smashing 80 from 49 balls. His record-breaking opening partnership of 170 with Alex Hales saw them claim a historic ten-wicket win in Adelaide.
Even though his scoring in the Final was somewhat quiet by his standards, Buttler registered a valuable 26 runs against a menacing Pakistan bowling attack. He then led the efforts in the field with his expert captaincy, forcing Pakistan to fall short, and claiming England’s second ever T20 World Cup trophy.
Buttler claims the award from a field which also contained teammate and fellow World Cup winner Adil Rashid, and Pakistan fast bowler Shaheen Shah Afridi, both of whom played significant roles with the ball, guiding their sides all the way to the showpiece finale of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia.
Reacting to his ICC Men’s Player of the Month prize, Buttler commented: “I want to thank the fans for voting for me as the ICC Player of the Month for November. This award is down to the efforts of my teammates in what was the most incredible month of cricket, culminating in winning the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia.
“It is right up there amongst the best months of cricket I’ve been involved in, and it was pretty special to lead a group of players to the ultimate accolade of becoming world champions."
Former England international and ICC Player of the Month voting panel member Lydia Greenway, added: “Jos continues to show the world why he is one of the best white ball players to have graced the game. Fearless, skillful and a fantastic leader who, coming into the tournament had big shoes to fill following Eoin Morgan’s departure. Determined to do things his way paid off immensely in his own and his team’s performances.”
Sidra Ameen secures the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award thanks to her dominant performances against Ireland in November’s ODI series, becoming the second successive winner of the prize from Pakistan after Nida Dar won back in October.
Amassing 277 runs through the series and only being dismissed once, opening batter Ameen started the month with her highest score in ODIs, a remarkable 176 not out, as the hosts claimed a convincing 128-run victory in the first match. Ireland’s bowlers were left equally powerless to stop Ameen in the second ODI, as she posted another unbeaten score of 91 from 93 balls, this time to chase down the target in a nine-wicket victory.
Despite finally losing her wicket in the third ODI, Ameen walked away with the Player of the Series award to cap off a memorable series, and a successful run of performances in 2022.
Ameen claims her inaugural ICC Women’s Player of the Month award after beating two other prolific batters in the global vote – Thailand’s Natthakan Chantham and Ireland’s Gaby Lewis, who both piled on the runs in their respective matches during the month.
On winning the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award for November, Ameen commented: “I feel great to have won this award. It is also special following my teammate Nida Dar who won the award for October. This shows our team has displayed some great performances in the past few months in international cricket.
“I would like to dedicate this award to my parents and to everyone who has always supported me and prayed for my success. My performance with the bat against Ireland which helped the side claim the sweep over Ireland in the ODI series at home will always remain close to my heart.
“Individually, this year has been great for me, I have scored three ODIs centuries and all coming this year. And to top it off, ending the year by winning the ICC Women’s Player of the Month for November is just amazing.”
