ICC Awards 2021: Smriti Mandhana named Women's Cricketer of the Year; Babar Azam is ODI Cricketer of the Year

The International Cricket Council (ICC) continued to give out the 2021 ICC Awards. On Monday, winners of other categories were announced by the ICC. Indian women cricketer Smriti Mandhana was adjudged the Women's Cricketer of the Year. Her batting at the top-order was evident throughout 2021, as it helped India be competent.

Mandhana scored 855 runs across formats in 22 international matches at an average of 38.86, including a ton and five half-centuries. India had a turbulent year, winning just a couple of games at home to South Africa. However, Mandhana was the top run-scorer for the side. She was impressive in the one-off Test in England, followed by the One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is).

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Mandhana was even good in Australia in the ODIs and the Test, while she slammed her maiden Test ton in the day-night Test. "A year to remember 🤩 Smriti Mandhana's quality at the top of the order was on full display in 2021 🏏", captioned ICC in its social media post while announcing her the winner.

On the other hand, Pakistan skipper Babar Azam was named the ODI Cricketer of the Year. He played quote some splendid knocks, accompanied with sublime gameplay while scripting numerous top moments. He would also remember the year for leading Pakistan in the semis of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 and even defeating arch-rival India convincingly in the group stage.

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Azam scored 405 runs in six ODIs at 67.50, along with a couple of centuries. Pakistan had played two ODI series last year, while against South Africa, he was the second-highest run-scorer, with 228 runs. While the side suffered a 0-3 whitewash against England, Azam was the last man standing.

"First of all, I am thankful to the fans for supporting me and cheering me on. After that, I am grateful to PCB and ICC, especially my Pakistan team, for supporting and backing me. It wasn't possible without them. I feel proud to have such a good team. I am also thankful to my parents, who prayed a lot," Azam told ICC after winning the award.

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"The best innings, if you ask me, is that 158 I scored against England, which is also my highest score. I was struggling a bit at that time and needed a knock. I got it, and it gave me a lot of confidence. To beat South Africa in SA is a complicated task because the pitches are different, and they have a quality bowling attack," Azam added.