The International Cricket Council (ICC) has released the nominations for the Player of the Month award for February and it includes two Asian players and one from New Zealand.
India opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, Lanka top-order batsman Pathum Nissanka and New Zealand captain Kane Williamson have made it to the short list. All three are in sensational form and have been key players for their respective nations over the past month.
How did February turn out for Yashasvi Jaiswal?
The month of February turned out to be a very successful one for the left-handed batsman and the recipient of his wrath was the England team led by Ben Stokes. Yashasvi Jaiswal has been an essential asset for the Rohit Sharma-led Indian team in their five-match Test series against England.
In the first Test in Hyderabad, Jaiswal posted innings scores of 85 and 10 and although India lost, the stage was perfectly set for Jaiswal to maintain his performance in his first red-ball series at home. The 22-year-old showed what he is capable of in the second Test when he scored a double century in the first innings in Vishakhapatnam before getting out for 17 in the second.
It paved the way for India to set a target of 399 runs which England failed to reach and lost by 106 runs. Then in the third Test, after scoring just 10 in the first innings, Yashasvi Jaiswal made amends in the second innings at Rajkot with another wonderful double century. This time, his 214 off 236 balls helped India achieve a target of over 500 before finally coming out on top by a huge margin of 434 runs.
In the fourth Test at Ranchi, where India tripled their lead and won the series, Jaiswal scored 110 runs in an innings: 73 in the first and 37 in the second. In total, the UP born batsman scored 560 runs in 6 Test innings and also secured several records.
Kane Williamson’s performance in February
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson also had a successful February. Although it didn’t end well at the end of the month, Williamson is a very good contender for the ICC Player of the Month award. He led the Kiwis to their first test series victory against South Africa in a 2-match test series at home.
The 33-year-old had immense contributions in both Test match victories at Mount Maunganui and Hamilton. Williamson scored two consecutive centuries in innings in the first Test, where the hosts were victorious by 7 wickets. He earned scores of 118 and 109.
Then in the second Test, Kane Williamson missed a half-century in the first innings but made amends with a second innings score of 133* as New Zealand completed the whitewash with another 7-wicket win in Hamilton.
The magical month of February by Pathum Nissanka
Last but not the least, Sri Lanka’s top-order batsman Pathum Nissanka is the third player who could possibly win the ICC Player of the Month award. Nissanka had hit 210* off just 139 balls in the first of a 3-match ODI series against Afghanistan last month and capped off the series with another century.
His double century helped him surpass Sanath Jayasuriya’s record of most runs by a Sri Lankan in an ODI match of 189.