Rishabh Pant, Shabnim Ismail win ICC Player of the Month award for January 2021

Rishabh Pant has won the inaugural ICC Player of the Month Awards for his heroics with the bat in the series against Australia. He was the main man for India in the triumphant Test at the Gabba where he stitched crucial partnerships with batsmen around him and led the side to a series victory.  

In the Sydney Test that preceded the final Test of the series, he took the game by the scruff of the neck and played a belligerent knock of 97 runs that helped India to regain momentum in the game.

He competed with the England captain Joe Root who was in red-hot form and piled on a big hundred and a double-hundred in a two-match Test series against Sri Lanka.

Pant was delighted to be named as the best player for the last month and credited ICC for bringing these initiatives to recognise periodic performances. He said that such initiatives help youngsters like him to better their performances each time they walk onto the field. He dedicated his award to his teammates and fans who voted for him in the competition.

“I am delighted to be receiving the inaugural ICC Men’s Player of the Month Award. For any sportsperson, contributing to a team win is the ultimate reward but such initiatives help motivate youngsters such as myself to do better each time. I dedicate this award to every member of Team India that contributed to our victory in Australia and also thank all my fans who voted for me,” Pant said in the media release shared by ICC.

In Women’s cricket, South Africa’s Shabnim Ismail won the Player of the Month award for January 2021 for her performances in the series against Pakistan. She played three ODIs and two T20Is during the calendar month and took seven wickets to help his side win the ODI series. She was on fire in the T20 series against Pakistan as well and bagged a five-wicket haul in the second T20I.

Ismail was ecstatic at winning the Player of the Month Award and said credited the success to all the series of efforts she had put in during the off-season times while the lockdown was imposed across the world.

“Winning the ICC Women’s Player of the Month in January just shows that all the hard work I put in during the lockdown has paid off for me. This accolade would not have been possible if it were not for my teammates and I am grateful and thankful for all your support. Also, to all my fans and friends all around the world thank you very much for the vote, it really meant a lot to me. And lastly, a special thanks to also my family who have been there for me and supported me all through the way,” Ishmail said in the ICC media release.

Powered by Froala Editor

Powered by Froala Editor