Cummins and Sharma Claim December Honours in ICC Player of the Month Awards

Australia's captain Pat Cummins bags the ICC Men's Player of the Month award for his outstanding bowling during the Test victory over Pakistan.

India's Deepti Sharma won the inaugural ICC Women's Player of the Month award for her multi-format prowess against Australia and England.

You can read more about the ICC Player of the Month awards here. The International Cricket Council (ICC) today revealed the ICC Men’s and Women’s Player of the Month award winners for December 2023 after shortlists were announced last week.

In December 2023, Australia's captain Pat Cummins won the ICC Men's Player of the Month award for his outstanding bowling performance during his team's triumphant Test series against Pakistan, capping an incredible 2023.

After India defeated formidable opponents in England and Australia with remarkable wins in all three formats with to her batting and bowling prowess, Deepti Sharma gets her maiden ICC Women's Player of the Month award.

With his leadership and bowling prowess, Cummins was instrumental in Australia's Test victory over Pakistan in December 2023. Australia had already won their sixth Men's Cricket World Cup earlier in the year and their maiden World Test Championship.

The team's second Test triumph over Pakistan in Melbourne served as the high point of another outstanding month for Cummins. The bowler claimed 10 wickets during the game, including a sensational spell just as the suspenseful conclusion was drawing near.

Cummins' 250th wicket in the longest format, a well-set Mohammed Rizwan, was among his five wickets for 48 in the second innings, which ensured Australia's stunning triumph.

Cummins Achievements -

1. Won WTC Trophy as Captain.
2. Won ODI World Cup 2023 as Captain
3. Ashes Retained as Captain
4. 20.25 cr. in IPL Auction
5. Man of the Match in the Boxing Day Test
6. Player of the Month in December

Cummins is seeking to add to his collection of personal awards after a fantastic year in all forms. He is nominated for the highest men's award in the ICC Awards 2023 for his accomplishments over the calendar year, the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy.

ICC Men’s Player of the Month for December, Pat Cummins commented - “It’s been a great year for the group across all formats and to cap it off with a strong performance against a challenging Pakistan side was a nice way to finish 2023.

Overall we are very pleased with the summer so far and looking ahead to the West Indies and New Zealand series

In December, Deepti Sharma won her maiden ICC Women's Player of the Month award after putting up several outstanding individual performances for India in all three formats. The all-rounder took the scene in the opening Test match against England in Mumbai after beginning the month quietly in the Twenty20 International matches against England.

The off-spinner took great care of the ball, taking 5 crucial wickets in the first innings and 4 in the second, to finish with match figures of 9 for 39 and win Player of the Match. He had hit 67 with the bat in the first innings, helping to build a massive first-innings total.

In the next Test match victory over Australia, Sharma carried on this trend by top-scoring with a vital 78 runs in the middle order as India defeated Australia by eight wickets.

There were many more highlights for Sharma in the ensuing ODI matches against Australia, notably five for 38 in the second match as India narrowly lost.

ICC Women’s Player of the Month for December -

It’s an honorr to be voted the ICC Women’s Player of the Month for December. I feel very good about my game at the moment and I’m glad that reflected in my performances for India last month against strong opponents. I’ll continue to work hard so that I can have more moments like this in the future

I’m grateful to have been chosen for this award and the fact that fans around the world also voted for me makes it extra special. I want to thank them and my teammates for helping me win this award

Cummins and Sharma were declared the winners based on votes cast by fans worldwide who registered on icc-cricket.com and by a team of experts made up of media representatives, former international players, and members of the ICC Hall of Fame.

To win the December award, Cummins defeated fellow Test stars Taijul Islam of Bangladesh and Glenn Phillips of New Zealand, while Sharma triumphed over colleague Jemimah Rodrigues and Zimbabwe's Precious Marange.