India talisman pacer Jasprit Bumrah along with England batters Joe Root, Harry Brook and Australia batter Travis Head have been shortlisted for the ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year.
“England’s marathon run-scoring duo, Australia’s swashbuckling left-hander and India’s pace-bowling icon make for a stellar list of nominees for the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy,” ICC said in a release on Monday.
Jasprit Bumrah went on an inspiring run across formats for India, guiding his side to memorable triumphs, including their second ICC Men’s T20 World Cup title. Bumrah nabbed 15 wickets from eight outings – including a couple in the final against South Africa – as India went unbeaten at the 2024 T20 World Cup.
The right-arm quick also boasts incredible numbers in the longest format this year. From 13 Test outings, Bumrah notched a sizable tally of 71 wickets. Be it home or away, Bumrah thrived under different conditions and capped off his year putting in an incredible shift during India’s Test tour of Australia.
Wearing the captain’s armband in the Perth Test against Australia, Bumrah led from the front as India took an early lead in the five-Test series. With the visitors dismissed for 150, the skipper ran through the Australian batting to claim a five-wicket haul and establish India’s advantage in the first innings. In the second innings, Bumrah added to his tally, finishing the Test as player of the match with eight wickets.
Harry Brook emerged as one of England’s most reliable performers in the longest format in the year gone by. The 22-year-old not only scored a heap of runs and was also a flagbearer of England’s quickfire brand of cricket.
Having been a major contributor with the bat during the home series wins against West Indies and Sri Lanka, Brook raised the bar even higher with his displays away from home. The right-handed batter piled back-to-back centuries against New Zealand, helping England win their first Test series in the country since 2008.
His consistent performances helped the 22-year-old dethrone teammate Joe Root atop the ICC Men’s Test Batting Rankings. But his best innings came in the sub-continent, guiding England to a mammoth win against Pakistan.
In a run-fest in Multan, Brook constructed his maiden triple hundred. A power-packed 317 off 322 balls saw the 22-year-old combine alongside Joe Root for a marathon 453-run stand.
The duo shouldered England to what was their third-highest total in Test cricket, and eventually cap off a win – their sixth in the country – by an innings and 47 runs. Brook was adjudged player of the match for his spectacular innings.
Joe Root climbed new heights in 2024. The England veteran finished with over 1000 Test runs in a calendar year for the fifth time in his career. The former England skipper surpassed a plethora of greats to have the joint-fifth highest century haul in the longest format – 36, alongside Rahul Dravid.
He also maintained a long reign as the number one in ICC Men’s Test Batting Rankings, scoring an impressive six Test hundreds and another five fifty-plus scores to his name. While there was a plethora of outstanding knocks, one in particular stood out.
Flaunting his diverse range of shots, Root decimated the Pakistan bowling attack enroute to his sixth Test double century in Multan.
Equalling the haul of Ricky Ponting and Sachin Tendulkar for the 200-run milestone, Root’s partnership with Harry Brook laid the foundation for a memorable win away from home.
On the other hand, Australia’s trump card with the bat and their big-match performer in 2023, Travis Head continued his purple patch with stellar performances this year. Typifying an aggressive brand of batting, the southpaw brandished runs at a brisk rate in the shortest format and finished among the leading run-getters at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.
In the Test arena, Head was vital to Australia’s push for defending their ICC World Test Championship title. The left-handed batter closed the year leading the run-scoring charts in the five-Test series against India at home.
Trailing 1-0 in the Border-Gavaskar Series, after India’s dominant display in Perth, Head fashioned a classic counter-attacking knock during the second Test in Adelaide.
Compiling 140 runs off 141 deliveries, Head took the attack to the Indian bowlers in the pink-ball Test, propelling Australia to a 337, seizing a 157-run advantage in the first innings.
Laced with 17 fours and four sixes, Head’s innings helped the hosts square the series and was named as Player of the Match. (ANI)
