Three cricket stars have been shortlisted for the ICC Men’s Player of the Month Award for August 2023.
The nominees include two Pakistani players, Babar Azam and Shadab Khan, as well as West Indies wicketkeeper Nicholas Pooran.
Babar Azam, the top-ranked batter in the ICC Men’s ODI Player Rankings, continued his impressive form in August. He contributed two fifties and a century to Pakistan’s successes. Babar played a crucial role in Pakistan’s thrilling last-over victory against Afghanistan in the second ODI, where he scored 53 runs. He followed it up with another important 60 in the third ODI, helping Pakistan secure a clean sweep with a 3-0 series win. In the Asia Cup opener, Babar scored a remarkable 151 against Nepal and became the quickest player in history to score 19 ODI centuries.
Also Read: Babar Azam, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah boost ICC Test rankings.
Shadab Khan, Pakistan’s star all-rounder, made significant contributions with both bat and ball in August. He played a key role in Pakistan’s series win against Afghanistan, including a Player of the Match performance in the second ODI, where he scored 48 off 35 balls.
Shadab also excelled with the ball, taking crucial wickets in the series. In the Asia Cup, he recorded figures of 4/27 against Nepal.
Nicholas Pooran had a standout series against India, helping West Indies break their six-year drought against the Men in Blue.
He played crucial innings, including a measured 41 in the first T20I and an explosive 67 in the second T20I, which secured a series win for West Indies. Pooran finished as the highest run-getter in the series, scoring a total of 176 runs.
The ICC Men’s Player of the Month Award for August 2023 will recognize outstanding performances in international cricket. The winner will be selected based on fan votes and an ICC voting panel.
