Sri Lanka’s rising star, Harshitha Samarawickrama, then made headlines leading her team to their maiden Asia Cup title and now being named the ICC Women’s Player of the Month for August 2024. She edged out Ireland’s Orla Prendergast and Gaby Lewis to claim this prestigious accolade.
Sri Lanka has been on a remarkable streak of nominations, with at least one Sri Lankan player being shortlisted since April. Notably, three of the last four winners have hailed from Sri Lanka, including Chamari Athapaththu, who won the award in both May and July. This marks the fifth instance of two different players from the same country consecutively winning the Player of the Month award.
Chamari Athapaththu clinched the honor in July, and now Harshitha follows suit, becoming the second Sri Lankan to win the title. Additionally, Sri Lanka has become only the second country to secure Player of the Month awards in both the men’s and women’s categories, with young all-rounder Dunith Wellalage winning in the men’s category and Harshitha Samarawickrama in the women’s.
Harshitha grabbed attention with her unbeaten 69* against India in the Asia Cup final, where she was named Player of the Match and played a crucial role in securing Sri Lanka’s first-ever Asia Cup title. Her remarkable form continued against Ireland in both the T20I and ODI series.
In the T20I series against Ireland, Harshitha shone with an unbeaten career-best 86* in the first match, followed by a solid 65, finishing as the highest run-scorer with 151 runs. Despite an early dismissal in the ODI series opener, she bounced back with a career-best 105, becoming only the third Sri Lankan, after Chamari Athapaththu and Vishmi Gunaratne, to score an ODI century. She ended the series as the top run-scorer, with 172 runs, including an unbeaten 48 in the final match.
Harshitha Samarawickrama expressed her joy and gratitude on receiving this prestigious recognition in her career. She considers this achievement a major confidence booster ahead of the upcoming Women’s T20 World Cup.
Harshitha credited her success to the support of her teammates, coaches, family, friends, and mentors, emphasizing how their unwavering support played a crucial role. She also acknowledged the immense talent of the players nominated alongside her for the Player of the Month award, appreciating the opportunity to compete with such high-quality cricketers.
On being named the Player of the Month, Harshitha Samarawickrama expressed, “I am extremely happy with this recognition, which I consider a new high in my career. It certainly gives me a lot of confidence ahead of the big competition, the Women’s T20 World Cup.”