ICC has announced the cricketer of the decade awards which include an award for each format and a special one called the International cricketer of the decade. The voting for these awards has started and the winner will be declared on the 18th of December. The winner will be decided by an expert panel and the votes so it will be interesting to see who wins this special award. The Nomination list for all the awards has been announced and it is going to be tough competition to choose between these players.
The Nomination List for the International Cricketer of the Decade award includes Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin from India, Joe Root from England, Kane Williamson from New Zealand, AB De Villiers from South Africa, Steven Smith from Australia, and Kumar Sangakkara from Sri Lanka. So, let’s have a look at the four cricketers who could win this award.
4. Kane Williamson
The New Zealand skipper – Kane Williamson is a strong contender to win this award. He is one of those players who perform well in all three formats consistently. Not only that but he also leads his national side in all three formats. In the last decade, he has scored more than 6000 runs in ODIs and Tests at an average of over 45 in both formats.
He had a great 2019 World Cup in which he led the Kiwis to the Finals which they lost on the boundary count. He was the Man of the Tournament in that World Cup. Due to all these achievements, he will be one of the strong contenders for this award.
3. Steve Smith
Even though Steve Smith missed one year of international cricket, he has covered it up with his unbelievable performances in the last year or so. There is no doubt that he has been the best Test batsman in the last decade with more than 7000 runs at an average of over 60.
He was one of the top performers in the ICC 2015 World Cup which Australia won. He has scored runs consistently across conditions and hence he is a high chance of winning this special award.
2. AB De Villiers
Whenever AB De Villiers bats he does something special. Many people have called him a genius and he is one because he does things that many people can’t even think of. It is unfortunate that we don’t see him at the highest level in international cricket but he has done enough to be a strong contender for this cricketer of the decade award.
He has scored more than 6000 runs in ODIs with a 60+ average and more than 5000 runs in tests with a 55+ average. He is right up there with all the great batsmen. There is no doubt that AB De Villiers is one of the greatest to have ever played the game and hence he might as well win this ICC award.
1. Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli is the most talked about and celebrated cricketer of this decade. Whenever India plays a series, most of the talk is about Virat Kohli. The Indian captain has scored runs heavily in all three formats in the last ten years. He is the only player to cross 10,000+ ODI runs in this decade as he has scored 11125 runs at a 60+ average. In Tests, he is nowhere behind as he has scored 7000+ runs at 50+ average with seven double hundreds.
His hunger and determination to score runs which is very different from others. He has led India successfully in all three formats in the last three years. There is no doubt that the Indian captain is the strongest contender to clinch the ICC International Cricketer of the Decade Award.
