Analysis
Five contenders to win Cricketer of the Year Award
2023 has been an amazing year for cricket fans. The ODI World Cup 2023 was the pinnacle of the year in the cricketing calendar. The world has witnessed an exciting action in cricket, particularly in the last three months, where the ODI World Cup was being played. Apart from this, the other major cricketing tournaments took place were like the Asia Cup 2023, Ashes 2023, WTC Final 2021-23, Border Gavaskar Trophy 2023, and so on.
Many players showed their talent in these tournaments and earned a name for themselves. Some of them were already established, while others made their mark at the big stage. The year saw the domination of ODIs over Tests, as there was the all-important ODI World Cup in the format. T20Is and Tests were not played as much as they usually are. The teams still have some great performers in different formats of the game this year.
Most of the players were more invested in ODIs. Hence, the players during the year had stats in which ODIs dominated the profile over other formats. The contenders to be the Cricketer of the Year Award belong to different countries. It was surely the year of batters, as almost all of them shined in different formats and scored several runs. Here are the five contenders to win Cricketer of the Year Award.
5. Heinrich Klaasen
2023 (Source: Twitter)
Heinrich Klaasen had a stellar year as a middle order batter in ODIs. This year has been pathbreaking for him in ODIs. In the calendar year, Klaasen has scored 900 runs in 20 innings at a batting average of 50.00, at a stunning strike rate of 143.31, including 3 hundreds and 2 fifties. Klaasen also has 17 catches to his name as a fielder. In T20Is, Klaasen does not have much success yet in the year. With just 2 games left in the year, it is unlikely to change. But his exploits in ODIs have been simply stunning.
Klaasen started the year with a bang by scoring 137 runs in 3 innings at a strike rate of 121.24. Against West Indies, Klaasen scored 119*(61). In the series against Australia, Klaasen scored 243 runs in 5 innings at a strike rate of 158.82. In the ODI World Cup 2023, Klaasen scored 373 runs in 10 innings at a batting average of 41.44, at an incredible batting strike rate of 133.21, including a hundred and a fifty. With 2 T20Is and 3 ODIs yet to go in the year, Klaasen has been phenomenal as a batter in the calendar year.
4. Daryl Mitchell
Daryl Mitchell (Source: Twitter)
Daryl Mitchell has been brilliant in both Tests and ODIs. In ODIs, Mitchell has scored 1204 runs in 25 innings at a batting average of 52.35, at a good strike rate of 100.25, including 5 hundreds and 3 fifties. Particularly in the ODI World Cup 2023, Mitchell was exceptional, as he scored 552 runs in 9 innings at a batting average of 69.00, at a great strike rate of 111.07, including 2 hundreds and 2 fifties. Mitchell claimed 11 catches as a fielder in the tournament and scored two fantastic hundreds against India.
In Test cricket, Mitchell has been good during the year. The Kiwi batter has scored 469 runs in 13 innings at a batting average of 42.64, including a hundred and 4 fifties. Mitchell has claimed 12 catches in the format as a fielder. Mitchell has not been that good in T20Is. But he has a fifty to his name in the format. For his brilliant performance in the ODI World Cup 2023, where he was one of the best middle order batters in the tournament, Mitchell might be in contention to win the award.
3. Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli (Source: Twitter)
Virat Kohli has been at his usual best in the calendar year 2023. Particularly in ODIs, Kohli had a great year. In the format, Virat has scored 1377 runs in 24 innings at a batting average of 72.47, at a very good strike rate of 99.14, including 6 hundreds and 8 fifties. As a fielder, Virat has claimed 12 catches. In the big matches, Virat has performed well. In the Asia Cup 2023, Virat scored 122*(94) against Pakistan that totally took the game away from them. His performance in the ODI World Cup 2023 was remarkable.
Virat scored 765 runs in 11 innings at a batting average of 95.63, at a good strike rate of 90.32, including 3 hundreds and 6 fifties. In the tournament, Virat became the first batter to score 50 ODI hundreds. In the semifinal and the final of the tournament, Virat scored a hundred and a fifty. Even in Tests, Virat has scored 557 runs in 10 innings at a batting average of 55.70, including 2 hundreds and a fifty. For his performance in the ODI World Cup 2023, Virat would be one of the contenders to win the award.
2. Shubman Gill
Shubman Gill (Source: Twitter)
Shubman Gill stood out as a batter this year. Across all the formats of the game, Gill showed his exceptional skills as a batter. In ODIs, he was simply outstanding. Gill had scored 1584 runs in 29 innings at a batting average of 63.36, at a very good strike rate of 105.46, including 5 hundreds and 9 fifties. In the Asia Cup 2023, Gill scored 302 runs in 6 innings at a batting average of 75.50, at a strike rate of 93.50, including a hundred and 2 fifties. In the tournament, Shubman was the highest run scorer.
In the ODI World cup 2023, Gill scored 354 runs in 9 innings at a batting average of 44.25, at a strike rate of 106.95, including 4 fifties. Gill has shined in other formats too. In Tests, Gill has scored 230 runs in 8 innings at a batting average of 32.86, including a hundred against Australia. In T20Is, Gill has scored 304 runs in 11 innings at a batting average of 30.40, at a good strike rate of 146.86, including a hundred and a fifty. For his exceptional run in Limited overs cricket, Gill will be in contention to win the award.
1. Travis Head
Travis Head (Source: Twitter)
Travis Head has arguably been the best cricketer of the year. The Australian cricketer has been very good across all the formats. Most importantly, he won the WTC Final and the Knockout games of the ODI World Cup 2023 for Australia. In Tests, Head has scored 848 runs in 19 innings at a batting average of 47.11, including a hundred and 5 fifties. In ODIs, Head has scored 570 runs in 13 innings at a batting average of 51.82, at a stunning strike rate of 133.18, including 2 hundreds and 3 fifties.
In T20Is, Head scored 209 runs in 6 innings at a batting average of 34.83, at a stunning strike rate of 174.17, including a fifty. In the ODI WC 2023, Head scored 329 runs in 6 innings at a batting average of 54.83, at a stunning strike rate of 127.52, including 2 hundreds and a fifty. In the semifinal and the final, Head won the Player of the match award. In the WTC Final, Head scored 163 against India. In the Ashes and Border Gavaskar Trophy, Head scored 362 and 235 runs respectively. He is probably the most deserving candidate to win the award.
