Smriti Mandhana among Women's T20I Cricketer of the Year nominees
The International Cricket Council (ICC) revealed the Women's T20I Cricketer of the Year (2022) nominees on Thursday. India's Smriti Mandhana, Pakistan's Nida Dar, New Zealand's Sophie Devine, and Australia's Tahlia McGrath are the four players on the list. The aforementioned names enjoyed an incredible run this year, and their numbers state the same. Let us have a look at their stats.
Most WT20I runs for India in 2022
Mandhana, a nominee for the ICC Women's T20I Cricketer of 2021, made the list this time as well. She finished as India's leading run-scorer in WT20Is in 2022, having slammed 594 runs. Overall, she grabbed the fourth spot, only behind Kavisha Egodage (696), Esha Oza (675), and Theertha Satish (658). Mandhana shone at the 2022 Commonwealth Games (CWG) and the Women's T20 Asia Cup.
Fastest WT20I fifty for India
Mandhana smashed a blazing half-century against England Women in the semi-final of the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. The left-handed batter raced to a 23-ball fifty, breaking her record. Mandhana registered a 24-ball against New Zealand Women in 2019.
Mandhana appears in her 100th WT20I
Mandhana added another feather to her already illustrious hat, becoming the second Indian player to appear in 100 Women's T20Is. The dashing opener achieved the feat at the Women's Asia Cup T20 2022. Harmanpreet Kaur remains the only other Indian Women's player to get to this feat. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are the other Indians to feature in 100 T20Is across categories.
Nida displayed her all-round show
Nida Dar, the only Pakistani woman with over 100 T20I wickets, had an impressive run with the bat this year. She racked up 396 runs from 16 WT20Is at an astonishing average of 56.57 besides picking 15 wickets. The senior player registered three fifty-plus scores, including one against India at the Asia Cup. Nida recorded 145 runs and eight wickets in the tournament.
All-rounder Devine shines as well
New Zealand's Sophie Devine had a similar run in 2022. The top-ranked all-rounder (ICC Women's T20I Rankings) compiled 389 runs from 14 T20Is at an average of 29.92. Devine, who bowls, medium pace, took 13 wickets with the ball. She also guided New Zealand to 11 wins in 14 WT20Is this year. This includes a nail-biting Super Over win against West Indies in Antigua.
Australia's McGrath rose to prominence
Australian batter Tahlia McGrath, who made her T20I debut in October 2021, has risen to prominence in no time. The 27-year-old racked up 435 runs from 16 T20Is at an average of 62.14 this year. The medium-pacer also took 13 wickets. McGrath, who won the gold medal with Australia at the Commonwealth Games, averaged 42.66 in the tournament.
