DUBAI: Pakistan all-format captain Babar Azam has been nominated by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for the ICC Player of the Year 2022.
Babar, who won the ODI cricketer of the year award in 2021, has now been nominated for the most prestigious award in cricket alongside England’s Ben Stokes, New Zealand’s Tim Southee and Zimbabwe’s Sikandar Raza.
The right-handed batter who is in the top five rankings across each format, collected 2598 runs in 44 matches, he played in 2022.
Babar was the only player to breach the 2000-run mark in the calendar year 2022 with his 2598 runs coming at an average of 54.12, which included eight hundreds and 17 fifties.
“The 2021 ICC Men’s ODI Player of the Year continued to rule in the 50-over format, scoring 679 runs in nine matches. It is a testament to his consistency that he registered scores of 50 or more in eight of those innings,” wrote ICC in a press release.
“He continues to hold on to his top spot in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s ODI Player Rankings and is once again in the running to win the ICC Men’s ODI Player of the Year 2022,” the statement added.
Besides Babar, England’s Stokes, who scored 1066 runs and took 33 wickets in 28 matches across formats, has got the reward of his consistent performances that include a gritty 52* in the final of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup against Pakistan.
Zimbabwean all-rounder Raza, on the other hand, continued to thrill with his tremendous all-round skills and thus enjoyed a magnificent year. The right-handed batter scored 1380 runs and claimed 33 wickets in 39 matches.
Meanwhile, Southee, who is currently playing the first Test against Pakistan, has thus far claimed 65 wickets in 31 matches, the highest by a Kiwi bowler in a calendar year.
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