ICC announces Men's Player of the Month nominees for January
Australian veteran Josh Hazlewood, West Indian young sensation Shamar Joseph, and English batter Ollie Pope will compete for the ICC Men's Player of the Month award for January.
The month saw two thrilling finishes in the Australia-West Indies second Test and the India-England first Test.
Shamar Joseph was the star for the West Indies, picking up an incredible 13 wickets in the two Tests at Adelaide and Brisbane. Despite playing his first international games, the 24-year-old troubled the Aussie batters with his skiddy action and fearsome pace.
Joseph's heroics included a memorable spell of 7/68 in the second Test at the Gabba to help the Caribbean side record a Test victory in Australia after 27 years.
Meanwhile, Hazlewood was his usual impressive self in the two Tests against the West Indies, finishing as the leading wicket-taker with 14 scalps. He also started the month with a four-wicket haul in the third Test against Pakistan.
The 33-year-old finished January with 19 wickets at a sensational average of 11.63, including a five-wicket haul and two four-wicket hauls.
Ollie Pope is the final candidate for the Player of the Month honors, thanks to his extraordinary knock of 196 in the first Test against India at Hyderabad. Despite scoring only a single run in the first innings, the 26-year-old compiled one of the best Test innings by a visiting batter in Indian conditions.
Pope's knock helped England overcome a 190-run first-innings deficit to set India a target of 231. Eventually, it proved to be the difference as the hosts suffered a shocking 28-run defeat in Hyderabad.
Australians dominate the Women's Player of the Month nominees for January
Two of Australia's most reliable performers, Beth Mooney and Alyssa Healy, joined Ireland's teenage sensation Amy Hunter as nominees for ICC Women's Player of the Month honors.
After missing out in the first two T20Is against India to start the month, Mooney scored a series-clinching 52* in the final encounter. She followed that with a 72* and 82 in two of the three T20Is against South Africa as the Aussies triumphed by a 2-1 margin.
Meanwhile, Aussie skipper Alyssa Healy started the month with a quick-fire 82 in the final ODI against India to help complete a 3-0 whitewash of the hosts. She was consistent in the six T20Is against India and South Africa, scoring 174 runs in six innings at an average of 29.
18-year-old Amy Hunter scored 58 runs in the three ODIs against Zimbabwe before a sensational display in the following T20Is against the same opponent. The teenager scored an unbeaten 101 off 66 balls, followed by another 77* off 57 deliveries in the opening two games.
She signed off a remarkable month with a 29-ball 40 in the third T20I to help the Irish take an unassailable 3-0 series lead.