ICC announces final set of ICC Awards 2023 winners Ft. Virat Kohli, Pat Cummins

The International Cricket Council (ICC) today concluded its announcements of ICC Awards 2023 winners.

Pat Cummins and Nat Sciver-Brunt were recognised as the outstanding cricketers across all formats of international cricket in 2023, scooping the top awards following four days of announcements on ICC official channels, where Teams of the Year and individual award winners in 13 categories had been unveiled since Monday.

Winners in the ICC Awards were determined from votes cast by an independent panel of prominent media representatives – the ICC Voting Academy – and hundreds of thousands of global cricket fans, who had been voting for their top performers in 2023 since early January.

Among the other international stars to celebrate individual accolades in the ICC Awards 2023 through Thursday’s announcements were Australia batter Usman Khawaja (ICC Men’s Test Cricketer of the Year), India batter Virat Kohli (ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Year), Sri Lanka captain and all-rounder Chamari Athapaththu (ICC Women’s ODI Cricketer of the Year), Richard Illingworth (ICC Umpire of the Year) and players from Zimbabwe, who won the ICC Spirit of Cricket Award.

ICC Men’s and Women’s Cricketers of the Year 2023

Cummins receives the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy after a phenomenal year which saw him produce outstanding individual performances while also leading his side to the ICC World Test Championship and ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup titles.

Cummins is the fifth Australian to win the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy, following Ricky Ponting (2006 and 2007), Mitchell Johnson (2009 and 2014), Michael Clarke (2013) and Steve Smith (2015).

Cummins grabbed 42 wickets in 11 Tests during the year at an average of 27.50 with a best match haul of 10 for 47 in the Boxing Day Test against Pakistan. These notable contributions came as Australia claimed their maiden World Test Championship mace and retained the Ashes on English soil.

In ODIs, he grabbed 17 wickets in 13 matches at an economy rate of 5.74. His best figures of three for 51 against South Africa in the CWC23 semi-final was followed by a crucial spell of two for 34 against India in the blockbuster final in Ahmedabad.

The Australian wins the award from fellow nominees, compatriot Travis Head and Indian duo Ravindra Jadeja and Virat Kohli.

Pat Cummins: “It’s a huge honour. It has been a big year, lots of wonderful team success. To get this individual honour is huge and I am pretty amazed. In terms of individual accolades, it is right up there.

“All the other nominees obviously had fantastic years as well. Travis, as a team-mate, I saw him win the World Test Championship Final and the World Cup final, and he was the Player of the Match in both matches. He had an amazing year. Jadeja and Kohli are both super consistent. They find a way to drag their team out of trouble and win it for them, so to win alongside those guys is really special.”

Sciver-Brunt, who was also in the running for the ODI award after scooping both awards last year, wins the major women’s award thanks to consistent performances across all three formats.

The England all-rounder scored 137 runs in two Tests, 393 runs in six ODIs at an average of 131 and 364 runs in 10 T20Is at a strike rate of 135.82. She also contributed with the ball, taking wickets in all three formats.

Sciver-Brunt joins elite company in winning her second Rachael Heyhoe Flint Trophy, with only Ellyse Perry (2017 and 2019) and Smriti Mandhana (2021 and 2018) having won twice in the past. Only Sciver-Brunt can boast back-to-back success.

Chamari Athapaththu of Sri Lanka and the Australian pair of Ash Gardner and Beth Mooney were the others shortlisted for the prestigious award.

Nat Sciver-Brunt: “It feels pretty special. I wasn’t expecting it as I was coming up against some players that have done so well in 2023. I’m really pleased and pretty proud.

“It is one of the top awards you can win coming up against teammates and other international teams. It’s something very special.

“All three other nominees had amazing years and they’ve all done well against us during the past year.”

On the desire to make it a hat-trick of Heyhoe Flint Trophy wins in 2024, Sciver-Brunt says, “Keeping my consistency is something that I’ve wanted to do in the last few years and hopefully I can go about my processes and my games in the same way this year and I’ll be stood here again.”

ICC Men’s Test Cricketer of the Year 2023

Australia batter Usman Khawaja was named the ICC Men’s Test Cricketer of the Year, holding off competition from fellow Australian run-scorer Travis Head, India spinner R Ashwin and England batter Joe Root.

Khawaja was the only player to score over 1,000 Test runs in 2023, scoring 1,210 runs at an average of 52.60 and registering three centuries during the 12-month period. He started the year with 195 not out against South Africa in Sydney and followed up with fine centuries against India in Ahmedabad and against England in Birmingham.

Usman Khawaja: “I’m very humbled. It’s a great privilege. I’ve been playing cricket for a long time and I didn’t think in my wildest thoughts that at the age of 37 I would win the ICC Men’s Test Cricketer of the Year Award.

“All three of the other nominees are exceptional cricketers. I’m very humbled to be part of those nominees.”

ICC Men’s and Women’s ODI Cricketers of the Year 2023

Virat Kohli was the second most prolific run-scorer in ODIs last year behind Shubman Gill and picks up his fourth ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Year award after finishing the year with 1,377 runs which included six centuries and eight half-centuries.

2023 will forever be remembered as the year Kohli surpassed the great Sachin Tendulkar’s longstanding record of ODI centuries, and the award caps a memorable 12 months for the India batter, who guided India to the Men’s Cricket World Cup final, winning the Player of the Tournament prize along the way.

This is the seventh individual ICC Award won by Kohli during his glittering career, and his fourth in the ODI category after previous wins in 2012, 2017 and 2018. He also won the Test award in 2018 while the years 2017 and 2018 saw him also win the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year.

Kohli claims the silverware from a shortlist that included countrymen Gill and Mohammed Shami, plus New Zealand’s Daryl Mitchell.

Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu wins her maiden ICC Women’s ODI Cricketer of the Year award, becoming the first female cricketer from Sri Lanka to win an ICC Award. A landmark year has not only seen Athapaththu clinch the individual award, but also be named captain of both the ICC Women’s ODI and T20I Teams of the Year, announced earlier in the week.

The all-rounder scored 415 runs in eight matches during 2023, at an average of 69.16 and a strike-rate of 125.37. Among a year of highlights, her unbeaten knocks of 108 and 140 helped Sri Lanka win the ICC Women’s Championship series against New Zealand 2-1 in Galle in June and July.

The Sri Lanka skipper wins from fellow nominees Nat Sciver-Brunt, Amelia Kerr and Ashleigh Gardner.

Chamari Athapaththu: “I feel very happy and proud. I have finally achieved a big dream. Sometimes playing a level up is about improving, not impressing. So, I want to keep doing my best for my country all the time. Amelia, Nat and Ash are the world’s best all-rounders and I it was an honour to be nominated along with them.

“I have had some good achievements in the last few years. I am the first [female] Sri Lanka cricketer to score centuries in ODIs and T20Is, I had also scored 178 against Australia in the World Cup (2017), but this one is an important achievement of my career. I have sacrificed a lot for this award, so I am very happy.“

ICC Umpire of the Year

England umpire Richard Illingworth wins the David Shepherd Trophy for ICC Umpire of the Year for the third time, after previously winning in 2019 and 2022.

Richard Illingworth: “I’m delighted and very proud to receive the David Shepherd award for umpiring.

There have been so many people along the way who have helped me achieve in umpiring. I’m extremely grateful to my colleagues, administrators and coaches.

“A very special thanks to my wife Anne who not only has been my rock and confidant for many years but keeps me very grounded.

“Also, our two boys and their wonderful families who remind me there is life outside of cricket if I ever need perspective.”

ICC Spirit of Cricket Award

Zimbabwe Cricket were revealed as the winners of the ICC Spirit of Cricket Award for their sporting conduct immediately following the thrilling victory over West Indies in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier match in Harare in June.

As Zimbabwe took the catch to end the game and keep their hopes of qualification alive, West Indies endured a damaging loss, and Zimbabwe were quick to console their counterparts after a dramatic contest.

One of the players that offered consolation to a dejected Akeal Hosein was Sean Williams, and reacting to the team’s Spirit of Cricket Award win, he said: “We are humbled to receive this truly wonderful award in recognition of what we are about as a team and as a nation.

“After all, cricket is not just about winning and setting records – it is a game that has respect, friendship and fair play at its very core and these are values that we as cricketers should espouse.”

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