Sikandar Raza, Tahlia Mcgrath named ICC Player of the Month for August 2022

The International Cricket Council (ICC) today announced the winners of the ICC Player of the Month awards for August 2022 which sees Zimbabwe’s Sikandar Raza and Australia’s Tahlia McGrath honoured following their outstanding international performances during August.

Raza claims the ICC Men’s Player of the Month award thanks to an unforgettable series of scores against Bangladesh and India in Harare across two ODI series. The all-rounder struck two magnificent unbeaten centuries (135 not out and 117 not out) during the historic 2-1 series victory over Bangladesh, on both occasions securing victory for his side in dramatic fashion when chasing big targets. He scored another memorable century against India later in the month, albeit in defeat, continuing his sensational form shown throughout 2022. In addition to his exploits at the crease, Raza also highlighted his bowling threat in the shorter format, taking seven wickets during the month.

In claiming the ICC Men’s Player of the Month award, Raza becomes the first Zimbabwe international to win the award, overcoming fellow nominees and leading all-rounders Mitchell Santner of New Zealand and England’s Ben Stokes who also starred during an action-packed month of men’s cricket.

Tahlia McGrath becomes the latest Australian star to receive the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award after paving the way for her country to claim Commonwealth Gold in Birmingham. Following in the footsteps of Alyssa Healy, who claimed the award in April, McGrath amassed 114 runs at an average of 57 during the month, together with five wickets at 13.40, emphasising the crucial role she played in securing yet another success for her country. In amongst a series of strong displays, undoubtedly her star performance came in the victory over Pakistan, where McGrath scored an unbeaten 78, before her three wickets and a run out helped maintain her side’s unbeaten path to glory.