Kamindu Mendis and Maia Bouchier named ICC Men's and Women's Players of the Month for March
Sri Lankan batting all-rounder Kamindu Mendis capped off a sensational month of March by winning the ICC Men's Player of the Month award.
Mendis started the month off with a moderate T20I series against Bangladesh. However, Mendis followed that up with a historic Test series, scoring centuries in both innings of the first game in Sylhet.
He nearly made it three tons in a row, finishing on 92* in the first innings of the second Test in Chattogram. Mendis' century in the first innings of the opening Test came when Sri Lanka were reeling at 57/5, helping them post 280.
His 164 in the second innings came when Sri Lanka were 126/6 and the dual centuries helped the side eventually complete a 328-run victory.
Despite being stranded on 92* in the first innings of the second Test, Mendis' knock helped Sri Lanka post a massive 531 on the board. He tormented Bangladesh further by also picking up three wickets in the final innings as Sri Lanka won by 192 runs to complete a 2-0 whitewash.
Turning to the women's side, England's Maia Bouchier enjoyed a remarkable run in the T20Is against New Zealand. The 25-year-old scored 223 runs at an average of 55.75 in five T20I games, helping England complete a 4-1 series win.
"A recognition such as this motivates and makes us as players work more and more" - Kamindu Mendis
Kamindu Mendis was delighted to be named the ICC Player of the Month for March and called it a motivation to improve his performance further.
The Sri Lankan overcame competition from the other nominees, Ireland's Mark Adair and New Zealand's Matt Henry. Upon winning the prestigious award, Mendis told the ICC:
"I am extremely happy to be named the ICC Men's Player of the Month, which I consider an inspiration for my international career. A recognition such as this motivates and makes us as players work more and more to deliver in the middle for the team, country, and fans. I also wish the very best for the other two players who were nominated along with me, Mark Adair and Matt Henry, whom I consider excellent players and good competitors."
Maia Bouchier shared similar sentiments about winning the award and said:
"First of all, thank you to everyone who voted for me. I am so happy and grateful to everyone: my family and partner and the staff and my teammates who have supported me whilst playing at the international level. "
"I am so honoured to have won this award and I hope there are many more to come. It's been such an amazing couple of months, from training through the winter with my coaches at home and transferring what I've been working on into this series, so I am really glad I have been able to perform for the team," she added.
Bouchier overcame stiff competition from New Zealand's Amelia Kerr and Australia's Ashleigh Gardner to emerge victorious. She enjoyed scores of 43*, 71, and 91 in three of the five T20Is against New Zealand.