LAHORE: Pakistan star Babar Azam has been named among the nominees for the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s T20I Cricketer of the Year award.
Babar, who is currently the highest-ranked one-day international (ODI) player and sits sixth in the T20I rankings, has been nominated alongside India’s Arshdeep Singh, Australia’s Travis Head and Zimbabwe’s Sikandar Raza.
The nomination comes despite a mixed year with the bat, as the former Pakistan skipper scored 738 runs in 24 matches at a decent average of 33.54 with the help of six half-centuries and nearly a hundred boundaries.
Last year reflected an improvement in his batting average, with the batsman scoring 133.21 runs per 100 deliveries.
The right-handed batsman’s best performance came in the three-match away series against Ireland ahead of the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup when he scored 75 off 42 balls with the help of six fours and five sixes at a perfect strike rate of 178.57.
Meanwhile, Indian left-arm spinner Arshdeep has enjoyed a stellar year in the format, taking 36 wickets in 18 matches at an impressive average of 13.5 and best bowling figures of 4-9.
His best performance came last year in the T20 World Cup final against South Africa, when he, along with superstar Jasprit Bumrah, led India to glory with tight death bowling.
The Australia boss, who has had his first consistent run in the line-up since making his T20I debut in 2016, proved his mettle in the format by accumulating 539 runs in 15 matches at an average of 38.5 and a highest score of 80.
His runs tally is the second best by an Australian batsman in a calendar year and came at a strike rate of 178.47.
Raza from Zimbabwe has been nominated for the prestigious award for the third year in a row, as he continues to deliver goods for Chevron.
Reza scored 573 runs in 24 matches at an average of 28.65 and a highest score not out of 133, which came in Zimbabwe’s unbeaten run in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Africa Sub-Regional Qualifiers.
He was equally impressive with the ball, taking 24 wickets at an average of 22.25 and best bowling figures of 5–18.