Chamari Athapaththu Joins India Duo on ICC Women's Player of the Month September 2026 Shortlist

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced the shortlist of nominees for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award for September 2026. Featuring standout performers who dominated the Women’s Asia Cup and the Asian Games, three star players from India and Sri Lanka made the cut. Here is a closer look at the nominees and their exceptional statistics.

Shafali Verma (India)

India’s dynamic opener Shafali Verma enjoyed an explosive month at the top of the order, steering India to both a record-extending eighth Women’s Asia Cup title and Asian Games gold. Across seven T20Is in September, Verma amassed 360 runs at an astounding average of 72.00 and a lethal strike rate of 184.61, alongside contributing six wickets at an average of 13.00. She finished as the top run-scorer in the Asia Cup with 236 runs, highlighted by 64 in the semi-final and 68 in the final, before smashing a maiden T20I century off just 49 balls against Bangladesh in the Asian Games semi-finals.

Chamari Athapaththu (Sri Lanka)

Sri Lanka skipper Chamari Athapaththu led from the front with both bat and ball, guiding her side to the Asia Cup semi-finals and an Asian Games silver medal. In seven T20Is, she registered 226 runs at an average of 37.66 (strike rate of 140.37) and claimed 14 wickets at an average of 10.21. Her highlight of the month was a breathtaking spell of 7/5 against Indonesia, which included a hat-trick and marked the fifth-best bowling figures in Women’s T20I history. She followed that up with 175 runs during the Asian Games, including a match-winning 83* off 50 balls against Pakistan.

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N Sree Charani (India)

Left-arm spinner N Sree Charani was India’s bowling mastermind throughout their twin championship runs, finishing as the leading wicket-taker across both tournaments. The 22-year-old took 18 wickets in seven T20Is at a stingy average of 4.83 and an economy rate of 3.30. Her month included a match-winning 4/20 in the Asia Cup final against Sri Lanka and 4/10 against Japan at the Asian Games. Charani capped off September by making ranking history, reaching 817 rating points, the highest rating ever achieved by a bowler in ICC Women’s T20I history.