Virat Kohli is one of the two India stars nominated for the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy
Cricketer Virat Kohli (Photo: PTI)
The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the nominees for the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy on Friday.
Australia's Travis Head, Pat Cummins, India's stalwart batsman Virat Kohli and all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja have been nominated for the coveted award.
Australian match winner Travis Head became the second nominee for his sensational performances in red ball cricket.
In 31 matches, the left-handed batsman amassed 1698 runs, also lifting the World Test Championship trophy and the World Cup trophy against India.
2023 was Head's most productive run in Test cricket since his debut in 2018. After starting the year on a positive note by scoring a half-century against South Africa, Head made his mark in the Border Gavaskar Trophy.
When the rest of the batters struggled against India's clinical spin lineup, Head stuck to his aggressive playing style in three appearances and was one of three Australian batters to score 200 runs.
Head's only ton in the format came during the World Test Championship final in Australia against India. With India making early inroads, Head came in to steady Australia's sinking ship and raced to a century off just 106 balls.
In the ODI format, 329 of his 570 runs came in the World Cup. His strike percentage during the tournament was an impressive 127.51.
His 137 in the World Cup final proved crucial as Australia lifted their record-extending sixth title.
Head will face tough competition from Virat Kohli who became the first batsman to score more than 2000 runs in seven calendar years.
Throughout the year, Virat produced runs in both Test and ODI formats. In the final match of the Border Gavaskar Trophy, Kohli hit a majestic 186 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. This was his first Test ton since 2019. He then scored 121 against West Indies.
He went on to hit six ODI hundreds and finished with 50 tons in the format. This helped him become the player with most hundreds in the 50-over format, surpassing Indian maestro Sachin Tendulkar.
Kohli's compatriot Ravindra Jadeja scored 613 runs and 66 wickets in 35 matches. The experienced all-rounder took 22 wickets during the Indian Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
With 31 ODI wickets in his kitty, Jadeja also stood out in white-ball cricket. He took 16 wickets at 24.87 in the World Cup, with a career-best performance of 5/33 against South Africa at the Eden Gardens.
Finally, Australian World Cup-winning captain Pat Cummins had a year of his life as he guided the Baggy Greens to WTC success and their sixth World Cup title.
In the ODIs, he played some crucial knocks down the order, while also making crucial breakthroughs in his economic spells.
Cummins capped a remarkable year with his second 10-wicket haul in Test cricket. This helped Australia win the Test series against Pakistan.
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First print: January 6, 2024 | 6:49 am IST