Australia’s World Cup-winning captain Pat Cummins clinched the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for the ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year 2023. For Cummins, 2023 was nothing short of a fairytale story, a year that saw him lift the ICC World Test Championship trophy, retain the Ashes, and a record-extending sixth World Cup title.
The Australian skipper overcame tough competition from his teammate Travis Head, ODI cricketer of the year Virat Kohli and India’s star all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja. Cummins finished the year with 422 runs and 59 wickets in 24 matches.
The Cummin-led Australian team didn’t have a dream start to 2023 as they ended up losing the Border Gavaskar Trophy. But they started to turn things around after their WTC success over India and then successfully defended the Ashes series in England.
A terrific year that ended with winning the ICC Men’s @cricketworldcup 2023
The Australia bowler and captain has claimed the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year https://t.co/cv5T71ji25
ICC (@ICC) January 25, 2024
He spearheaded Australia’s pace attack against England in the first Test and provided a handy contribution of 38 runs to reduce the hosts’ lead to just 10 runs. (Australia’s Usman Khawaja Beat R Ashwin To Become ICC’s Test Cricketer Of The Year)
In the second innings, he claimed a four-wicket haul to ensure Australia required less than 300 runs to clinch victory. When Australia found themselves at 192/6, Cummins played a valiant knock to guide his team to a remarkable victory.
Cummins signed off 2023 with his second 10-wicket haul in Test cricket. His efforts with the ball helped Australia win the Test series against Pakistan. (WATCH: Virat Kohli Fan Touches Rohit Sharma’s Feet During India vs England 1st Test)
However, the 30-year-old stood out with his captaincy skills in the final of the ODI World Cup. After winning the toss, he put India to bat and introduced part-time spinner Glenn Maxwell to remove Rohit Sharma who was on a destructive path.
Cummins capitalized on the opportunity and removed Shreyas Iyer to put Australia in firm control and restrict India to a score of 240. In reply, Travis Head’s 137 guided Australia to yet another World Cup triumph.
