Smriti Mandhana Named ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year

Mandhana has also been named as the ICC Women’s ODI Player of the Year.

“It’s not over yet but I’m really happy that I’ve made a good comeback after the injury,” said Smriti Mandhana.

(Photo: PTI)

India's Smriti Mandhana has won the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Award for the ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year and also been named as the ICC Women’s ODI Player of the Year.

The 22-year-old has also been named in the ICC Women’s ODI Team of the Year and the ICC Women’s T20I Team of the Year, announced by the International Cricket Council on Monday, 31 December.

The left-handed opener Mandhana has scored 669 runs at an average of 66.90 in 12 ODIs and 622 runs at a strike-rate of 130.67 in 25 T20Is during the voting period, which ran from 1 January to 31 December 2018.

“The awards are pretty special because as a player when you score runs, you want the team to win, and then when you get acknowledged for your performances through these awards, it motivates you to work harder and do well for your team. The century I scored in South Africa (in Kimberley) was quite satisfying and then I had good home series against Australia and England. 

Smriti Mandhana

“A lot of people used to say I do not score that much in India, so I had a point to prove to myself. That was something which really made me better as a player. And then, of course, the first four matches of the ICC Women’s World T20 were quite memorable,” she added.

Indian bowler Poonam Yadav also found a spot in the ODI team, while the T20 team included Harmanpreet Kaur as captain along with Yadav and Mandhana.

The ODI and T20 sides were selected by a voting academy, which has former players like Lisa Sthalekar, Charlotte Edwards, Anjum Chopra and members of the media, and took into consideration performances in the 2018 calendar year.

List of Awards

Rachael Heyhoe Flint Award for ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year – Smriti Mandhana (India)
ICC Women’s ODI Player of the Year – Smriti Mandhana (India)
ICC Women’s T20I Player of the Year – Alyssa Healy (Australia)
ICC Women’s Emerging Player of the Year – Sophie Ecclestone (England)