Joe Root, England skipper and Ireland star Eimear Richardson have been voted winners of the ICC Player of the Month for August. Joe Root saw off competition from Jasprit Bumrah, the India pacer, and Pakistan speedster Shaheen Shah Afridi to win the award following a stellar August for the England captain.
Joe Root scored 507 runs in three Tests against India in August. He scored three important centuries, including an unbeaten 180* at Lord’s, and the form propelled him to the top of the MRF Tyres ICC Test Rankings for batters. The five-match series ended abruptly when the final Test had to be cancelled because of a Covid-19 outbreak in the Indian camp.
Joe Root Was Impressive With The Bat Leading England From The Front: JP Duminy
Joe Root had scored more runs (507) in the first three Tests than England’s next three highest run-scorers combined and had also been their highest individual scorer in each of their five innings. He scored three centuries, 109 in Trent Bridge, an unbeaten 180 in Lord’s, and 121 at his home ground in Headingley, which resulted in an England win.
“With the expectation and responsibility on his shoulders as the captain, I was really impressed with how he led from the front with the bat, and become the number one ranked Test batter in the world,” said former South Africa all-rounder JP Duminy, one of the panellists in the ICC Voting Academy.
On the back of his stunning display in August, Joe Root climbed to the top of ICC Men’s Test Rankings for batters on September 1. Placed fifth in the rankings before the start of the series, the England skipper had leapfrogged Virat Kohli, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, and Kane Williamson to the No.1 spot.
Eimear Richardson Of Ireland Put In A Fine All-Round Display In Women’s T20 WC Europe Qualifier
In the women’s award, Eimear Richardson saw off tough competition from teammate Gaby Lewis and Thailand’s Nattaya Boochatham. Eimear Richardson put in a fine all-round display in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier last month, which led her to be named the Player of the Tournament.
She took seven wickets at an economy rate of 4.19 in the tournament, including important spells of 2/6 in the opener against Germany and 2/24 against group-toppers Scotland. She also returned 2/0 and 1/22 against France and Netherlands respectively, as Ireland came second in their group.
Her contributions went beyond the ball. She scored a crucial 49-ball 53 in their final match against the Netherlands and totalled 76 runs in the tournament – a return that put her in the top five of the run charts.
“It was very exciting to be nominated for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month for August and to now be voted as the winner is just so amazing and humbling,” Richardson said.
“It was great to contribute to overall team performances at the European Qualifiers and hopefully we have done enough to make the next stage and compete on a global level again.”
Her performances were lauded by Pommie Mbangwa of the ICC Voting Academy.
“What an amazing and important contribution in a tournament that is important to all the teams, “he said.
“What any team wants is for players to stand up at critical times and Eimear’s contributions with bat and ball have come at the right time, been consistent and particularly significant.”
Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan and West Indies women’s team captain Stafanie Taylor were the winners of the ICC Player of the Month in July.