Fast bowlers Jasprit Bumrah and Shamar Joseph won in two categories each at the ESPNcricinfo Awards for 2024. India captain Rohit Sharma won for his innings against Australia in the T20 World Cup.
Bumrah won for his vital 2 for 18 in the thrilling T20 World Cup final against South Africa in Barbados, which ended with India winning their first World Cup title since 2011. His 5 for 21 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in a high-scoring IPL game in Mumbai was adjudged the Men’s T20 leagues bowling performance of the year.
Rohit Sharma, who captained India to the T20 World Cup title in Barbados, made a crucial 92 off 41 balls against Australia earlier in the campaign, which was voted the Men’s T20 Batting Performance of the Year.
Joseph, the Guyana-born fast bowler who made a tremendous impression during West Indies’ tour of Australia in 2023-24, was picked as Men’s Debutant of the Year, and his breakthrough 7 for 68 in his second Test, in Brisbane, which West Indies won, was chosen as the Men’s Test Bowling Performance of the Year.
The men’s Test batting award went to Ollie Pope for his magnificent 196, which produced an unlikely win for England in the first Test of their series in India after they conceded a large first-innings lead.
Wins in four award categories went to performances against Australia, showing they were, as ever, the side to beat. Fittingly, Pat Cummins, who led Australia to a hard-fought 2-1 lead over India in the Border Gavaskar Trophy, and booked his side a place in the World Test Championship final, was Men’s Captain of the Year.
Sophie Devine of New Zealand won the women’s equivalent award for taking New Zealand to the T20 World Cup title. Amelia Kerr, that team’s allround wunderkind, won in the Women’s T20I Bowling category for her 3 for 24 in the tournament final.
Chamari Athapaththu, the Sri Lanka women’s captain who has been in a terrific batting purple patch over the last two years, won the Women’s ODI batting award the second year in a row – this time for her unbeaten 195 against South Africa in an ODI in Potchefstroom.
South Africa’s women won big this year. Allrounder Marizanne Kapp picked up the Women’s ODI Bowling Performance of the Year for her 3 for 12 in an away win against Australia. Anneke Bosch’s crucial 74 in the T20 World Cup semi-final, also against Australia, won the Women’s T20I batting award. And Lizelle Lee won the Women’s T20 Leagues batting award for her extraordinary 150 off 75 balls in a WBBL match in Sydney.
ESPNcricinfo’s awards are voted on by a panel comprising former players Ian Bishop, Dale Steyn, Shane Bond, Andy Flower, Tom Moody, Nick Knight, Sanjay Manjrekar, Urooj Mumtaz, Farveez Maharoof, and the site’s senior editorial staff and correspondents.
Sambit Bal, editor-in-chief of ESPNcricinfo said, “The ESPNcricinfo awards celebrate what matters most to fans: performances that impact the big games and create memories. Unsurprisingly, our jury have chosen performances that lit up both T20 World Cups, and two Test match solos that were as memorable as they were against the odds.”
In the 18-year history of the ESPNcricinfo awards the top winners are Lasith Malinga, Sachin Tendulkar, Glenn Maxwell, Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah, who have won four awards each; and Mitchell Johnson, Kuldeep Yadav and Ben Stokes, with three apiece.
