‘Joke of the year’: Babar Azam’s nomination by ICC for this triumph stuns all the cricket fans
New Delhi: Arshdeep Singh, who played a key role in India’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup victory, has been nominated for the ICC Men’s T20I Cricketer of the Year alongside Zimbabwe’s Sikandar Raza, Pakistan’s Babar Azam, and Australia’s Travis Head. As India’s leading pacer in T20Is, Arshdeep has filled a crucial role, particularly with Jasprit Bumrah’s limited appearances in T20 matches due to his focus on Tests and ODIs. Arshdeep’s impressive 36 wickets in T20Is, second only to Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s 37 wickets in 2022, highlights his skill and consistency in the format.
This has to be joke of the year, Babar Azam is getting nomination over Jasprit Bumrah & Hardik Pandya, what’s wrong with u ICC. https://t.co/xPEKybstmm
— Sagittarius (@MidNightRain_32) December 29, 2024
Remarkably, Arshdeep achieved these impressive statistics in only 18 matches, while Bhuvneshwar Kumar took 37 wickets in 32 games. In 2022, Arshdeep ranked third with 33 wickets. The left-arm seamer has become an essential part of India’s T20I lineup, providing a much-needed variation with his pace. He has delivered outstanding performances in various conditions, playing a key role in India’s triumphs both at home and abroad in the West Indies, Sri Lanka, and South Africa.
ICC T20i Cricketer Of The Year Nominees.
– Arshdeep Singh.
– Travis Head.
– Sikandar Raza.
– Babar Azam. pic.twitter.com/psFwZoVI0r— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) December 29, 2024
One of Arshdeep’s standout moments came in the Men’s T20 World Cup final. While much of the credit went to Bumrah for his match-changing over, India’s victory would have been unimaginable without the crucial backing from Arshdeep’s exceptional performance.
Sorry but Babar Azam is nominated over Jasprit Bumrah who won the T20 WC with POTT. What a joke. pic.twitter.com/a2CxysIMTK
— R A T N I S H (@LoyalSachinFan) December 29, 2024
Arshdeep Singh played a pivotal role in defending a target of 177, joining forces with Bumrah to provide India with an ideal start by dismissing South African captain Aiden Markram for just four runs. Later, he claimed the crucial wicket of Quinton de Kock in the 13th over, maintaining India’s hopes alive.
His standout performance occurred in the 19th over, where he gave away only four runs, increasing the required rate from 10 to 16. This created pressure on David Miller, who ultimately fell, enabling India to move closer to securing their second T20 World Cup title.
Sikandar Raza has continued to shine for Zimbabwe, earning a place on the prestigious list for the third year in a row. As the all-rounder turned captain, he has been instrumental in Zimbabwe’s cricketing triumphs, particularly in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup sub-regional Africa Qualifier Group B, where he scored 199 runs and took 10 wickets.
Despite Zimbabwe’s T20I team still evolving, Raza’s leadership has guided them to victories over Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan this year. One of his memorable moments came against India when his cautious 17 runs helped Zimbabwe reach 115/9 on a challenging track. With the ball, he played a key role by dismissing Shubman Gill and taking two more important wickets to secure a thrilling 13-run win for Zimbabwe.
Babar Azam had an inconsistent year but remained Pakistan’s top T20I run-scorer. With six fifties and nearly a hundred boundaries, Babar was a key figure for Pakistan. His strike rate improved to 133.21, and he is close to breaking Rohit Sharma’s record for the highest T20I run-scorer, being just eight runs short of Rohit’s 4231 runs.
One of his notable performances came during Pakistan’s preparatory tour of Ireland before the T20 World Cup. After a surprising defeat in the first T20I, Babar led from the front in the decider, scoring 75 off 42 balls at a strike rate of 178.57 to seal the win in just 17 overs.
Travis Head demonstrated his versatility as a T20I batter for Australia in 2024, amassing 539 runs at an impressive strike rate of 178.47. He made explosive starts as an opener against New Zealand and continued his fine form into the T20 World Cup 2024.
Travis Head finished as the third-highest run-scorer in the tournament with 255 runs, boasting a strike rate of 158.38. His contributions were key to several of Australia’s victories, with his most memorable innings coming against England in Southampton.
Opening alongside Matthew Short, Head charged to 59 off 23 balls during the Powerplay, smashing 12 boundaries, including four sixes. His explosive innings played a crucial role in Australia setting a daunting target of 179, a total that proved too challenging for England, leading to a 28-run victory.