The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the nominees for the ICC Player of the Month for June on July 7. Introduced in January, this award was introduced to recognize the best performer in each month.
For the month of June, Indian all-rounder Sneh Rana, English spinner, and Indian opener Shafali Verma have been nominated for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award.
Who is the most deserving to win ‘ICC Player of the Month for June 2021’ ?#ICC pic.twitter.com/FvdVdaBGqO
— Female Cricket (@imfemalecricket) July 8, 2021
Let’s take a look at the nominees for June 2021:
Sneh Rana:
The Indian all-rounder made a comeback to international cricket this month after five years and surely has made it a memorable one. She played her debut Test match against England on June 18 and with her brilliant 4-131 spell and 80*(154) score, she became the first Indian women’s cricketer to score a 50+ score and take a 4-wicket haul in a test match and fourth overall. After getting a follow on, it looked difficult for India to survive in the game but after the dismissal of Raut in the 64th over, Rana stepped out and put up a magnificent partnership of 144 alongside Taniya Bhatia to keep India very much alive in the game and managed to draw the game for India.
Sophie Ecclestone:
The English spinner has been nothing but impressive throughout the India tour to England. She was the highest wicket-taker in the one-off Test against India. Ecclestone bagged eight wickets for 206 for an average of 25.75. In the first India batting inning, she took four wickets and she was one of the main reasons for India being slapped by a follow-on. In the next inning too, she gave her best and took another four wickets. She has shown her skills with the white ball too, she took eight wickets, three in the first two and two in the last, in the three ODIs against India
Shafali Verma:
The Indian opener, who is currently no.1 on the ICC T20 Batter Ranking, made the highest score by an Indian women cricketer on a Test debut, 96 runs from 152 balls on day two of India vs England match. Shafali broke the record of Chanderkanta Kaul who had scored 75 on her Test debut. She made another half-century in the second inning, a score of 63 runs in just 83 balls. She also became the first Indian women cricketer to hit a six on her Test debut. It was also only the second six-hit by an Indian woman in Test cricket. She also aggregated 59 runs in two ODIs against India at a strike rate of 85.50.
Who do you think will be declared as Player of the Month for June 2021?
A special ICC Voting Academy and fans all around the world will vote for this award. The results will be announced on July 12. The ICC Voting Academy comprises important members of the cricket community including well-known journalists, former players, broadcasters, and members of the ICC Hall of Fame. The ICC Voting Academy members have a 90% share in the final voting while the fans have a 10% share.
ICC Voting Academy for June 2021:
Afghanistan: Hameed Qayoomi and Javed Hamim; Australia: Melinda Farrell and Lisa Sthalekar; Bangladesh: Tarek Mahmud and Mohammad Isam; England: Elizabeth Ammon and Claire Taylor; Ireland: Ian Callender and Isobel Joyce; India: Annesha Ghosh and VVS Laxman; New Zealand: Mark Geenty and John Wright; Pakistan: Faizan Lakhani and Ramiz Raja; South Africa: Firdose Moonda and Makhaya Ntini; Sri Lanka: Neville Victor Anthony and Russel Arnold; West Indies: Ian Bishop and Merissa Aguilleira; Zimbabwe: Tristan Holme and Mpumelelo Mbangwa; Others: Paul Radley and Dirk Nannes.
Source: ICC Media Release