Nahida Akter wins ICC ‘Player of the Month’ award

DE Sports Desk
Left-arm spinner Nahida Akter scripted history by becoming the first Bangladesh woman cricketer to win the ICC ‘Player of the Month’ award for her brilliant performance in November.
She beat compatriot fellow team mate Fargana Hoque and Pakistan’s Sadia Iqbal to achieve the accolade.
“This is a moment to cherish,” a highly elated Nahid described her reaction after winning the award.
“To be recognised by such a distinguished panel of cricket experts means a lot and winning the ICC Women Player of the Month award will be a massive source of inspiration and motivation for me.”
Nahida Akter achieved the Player of the Month crown after tearing through opposition batters in her side’s closely-fought victory over Pakistan in Mirpur last month.
The first ODI encounter of the series saw Akter claim three wickets for 30 with a consistent spell of pressure bowling. With Pakistan chasing down a lowly 82 for victory, the spinner kept the contest competitive, claiming the wickets of Sidra Ameen, Bismah Maroof and Aliya Riaz to trouble the tourists in their charge to victory.
A quieter second match followed before she once more starred in the decisive third fixture. A superb economical 10-over spell produced three wickets for 26 runs as the tourists stumbled to 166 for nine in their 50 overs, laying the foundations for Akter’s teammates to seal the series with the bat in a seven-wicket victory.
Nahida claimed the Player of the Series accolade after having taken seven wickets at an impressive average of 14.14 across the three matches.
“We have played some amazing cricket in recent months and I am so happy to have contributed to the successes we have tasted as a team. I must thank my captain, coaches and teammates for always believing in me and that has allowed me to play my natural game against quality opponents and perform under pressure,” she added.
The 23-year-old is already the highest wicket-taker for Bangladesh in Women’s T20Is and the third-highest in ODIs.
Meanwhile, Australia opener Travis won the ‘Player of the Month’ award in Men’s category after his performance in semifinal and final played a key role in helping Australia win the ICC Cricket World Cup for the record sixth time.