ICC Player of the month till July

The International Cricket Council (ICC) nominates 3 cricketers every month based on the performances in that month. The shortlisted cricketers are then voted by the independent ICC voting academy and fans and hence the Player of the month is selected. It is a great representation of honoring the cricketers' rise in different matches. Here is a list of the ICC Player of the month till July 2021.

January- Rishabh Pant

Rishabh Pant has won the inaugural ICC Men's Player of the Month award of 2021. The shortlisted cricketers were Rishabh Pant, Joe Root, and Paul Stirling. His fearless performances in the two innings against Australia are one of the major reasons for winning this title. The Indian wicketkeeper-batsman smashed 97 runs in the 3rd test against Australia and 89 runs in the 4th test. His audacious contribution led India to win the series.

In the 3rd test match, his partnership with Pujara was exceptional when they scored 148 runs in 45 overs on the final day. He went back to the pavilion with only 3 runs away from his century. His innings in the 4th test match held at Brisbane is considered as his career's best innings. 89 runs scored by him helped India to win the match and the series.

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February- Ravichandran Ashwin

Ravichandran Ashwin has won the ICC Men's Player of the Month award for February 2021. The Indian off-spinner won the prestigious award for his terrific performances in the 4-match Test series against England. He made 24 wickets and 1 century in his name in February 2021. He also received the man of the series award for picking up 32 wickets in 4 test matches and smashing 186 runs including 1 century. His terrific knock against England helped India in scoring 317 runs and ending the match in a draw. His wholesome number of wickets also includes a fifer as well.

March- Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Among the shortlisted cricketers, Rashid Khan Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Sean Williams, Bhuvneshwar Kumar won the ICC men's player of the month award for March 2021. The Indian swing bowler was awarded because of his exceptional performance in the limited over recent series against England. In three ODI matches against England, he scalped 6 wickets with an economy of 4.65. and in 5 T20I matches, he picked up four wickets with an economy of 6.38.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar said to ICC media, "After what seemed like a really long and painful gap, I was delighted to be playing for India again. I used the time away to work on my fitness and skill and I'm happy to be back taking wickets for my country."

April- Babar Azam

The Pakistan skipper Babar Azam won the ICC men's player of the month for April 2021. The skipper has shown extraordinary performance consistently in the matches against South Africa. Alongside him, Fakhar Zaman and Kushal Bhurtel were also shortlisted for April. Also, he became the no. 1 ranked batsman by ICC men's ODI Player rankings and broke the reign created by Virat Kohli, and went straight on to the top of the charts. The exciting part about the nominations for April was the selection of Kushal Bhurtel. For the very first time cricketer from Nepal was shortlisted by the ICC for the player of the month.

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May- Mushfiqur Rahim

Mushfiqur Rahim has been awarded the ICC Player of the month from May 2021. The Bangladesh wicket-keeper batsman was the top scorer in a 3-match ODI series against Sri Lanka hosted at Bangladesh. In the 3 ODI matches, he smashed a total of 237 runs including 125 runs in the second ODI match. It was the first time ever when Bangladesh won an ODI series against Sri Lanka. He also played 1 test match against Bangladesh as well in the month of May.

June- Devon Conway

Devon Conway has been named the ICC Player of the month for June 2021. The New Zealand opener is the first Kiwi cricketer to win this prestigious award after his unbelievable performance in test cricket against England. His test debut is nothing less than a dream come true as he scored a double ton against England in his first test match. Also, he became the second Kiwi batsman to reach this feat in the debut test match. He also smashed a few half-centuries in his next two matches. His performance was great in the World Test Championship final against India as well. Moreover, he scored 200, 23, 80, 3, 54, and 19 in six consecutive test innings and making a total of 379 runs with an amazing average of 63.16.

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July- Shakib Al Hasan

Shakib Al Hasan has been named the ICC Player of the month for July 2021. Along with him, Hayden Walsh Jr and Mitchell Marsh were also nominated. Bangladesh all-rounder had an exciting July where he showed his class and caliber exceptionally well. In the ODI series conducted against Zimbabwe, he scored 145 runs and scalped 8 wickets. He followed his trail of wicket-taking in the T20I as well as he picked up three wickets at an economy of 7. In the one-off test match, he also picked up 5 wickets including 4/82 in the first innings. His stellar performance helped Bangladesh to win by 220 runs.