ICC Players of the Month (October): Noman, Kerr bag honors
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has announced Pakistan's Noman Ali and New Zealand's Amelia Kerr as Players of the Month for October 2024. Spinner Noman helped Pakistan beat England 2-1 in the three-match Test series against England at home in October. Meanwhile, Kerr starred in New Zealand's historic ICC Women's T20 World Cup title last month. Here are further details.
Noman's crucial role in series win
Noman Ali played a key role in Pakistan's comeback Test series win against England on home soil. He outshone other brilliant wicket-takers like Kagiso Rabada and Mitchell Santner to win the men's award for October. Noman returned to the Test arena in October, having picked up 20 wickets at 13.85 in two Test matches against England in Multan and Rawalpindi.
Noman secures Pakistan series victory
Noman's performance stood out in the second innings of both the remaining matches. He first took 8/46 in Multan to help Pakistan win by 152 runs and then sealed the series with 3/88 in the first innings and 6/42. This performance inspired Pakistan to a memorable comeback, making him ICC Men's Player of the Month.
Kerr's outstanding show in Women's T20 World Cup
On the other hand, Kerr was instrumental in New Zealand's victory at the Women's T20 World Cup in the UAE. She beat other prominent players Deandra Dottin and Laura Wolvaardt to win the October award. Kerr scored 160 runs and snapped up 19 wickets in October, including a record 15 wickets at the Women's T20 World Cup, etching her name in New Zealand cricket history.
How Kerr starred in final
Kerr's consistent performance throughout the competition also earned her the player-of-the-tournament title. In the final match, Kerr scored a pivotal 43 runs from 38 balls and took three wickets for 24 runs, leading New Zealand to their first T20 World Cup victory.
All about the prestigious award
The ICC acknowledges brilliant performances every month in men's and women's categories internationally, and therefore, those players are nominated. Eventually, one of them is picked as the winner for that particular month. They have been handing out these monthly awards since the start of 2021. Renowned journalists and former cricketers form the voting panel. Meanwhile, the public has 10% voting rights.
