Pat Cummins, Deepti Sharma win December honours in ICC Player of the Month Awards

Meanwhile, Deepti Sharma of India won the maiden ICC Women's Player of the Month award thanks to her multi-format brilliance against England and Australia, according to a release from the International Cricket Council (ICC) on Tuesday.

ICC revealed the Men's and Women's Player of the Month award winners for December 2023 after shortlists were announced last week.

Pat Cummins caps a spectacular 2023 with the ICC Men's Player of the Month award for December, following a supreme bowling performance in his side's victorious Test series against Pakistan.

On the other hand, Deepti Sharma won her first ICC Women's Player of the Month prize after batting and bowling brilliance in all three formats secured notable victories for India over strong opposition in England and Australia.

Cummins was at the forefront of Australia's Test success over Pakistan in December, demonstrating the leadership and bowling prowess that personified Australia's surge to success in 2023, winning their maiden World Test Championship mace, and their sixth Men's Cricket World Cup crown earlier in the year.

The highlight of another spectacular month for Cummins came in the side's second Test victory over Pakistan in Melbourne. The pacer took ten wickets in the match, which included an inspiring spell as the match approached a nervy climax.

His five for 48 in the second innings included the prized wicket of a well-set Mohammed Rizwan - Cummins' 250th in the longest format - ensuring Australia dramatically snatched victory.

Cummins is nominated for the top men's award in the ICC Awards 2023 for his performances during the calendar year - the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy - and will be hoping to add to his collection of personal accolades following a fine year in all formats.

"It's been a great year for the group across all formats and to cap it off with a strong performance against a challenging Pakistan side was a nice way to finish 2023. Overall we are very pleased with the summer so far and looking ahead to the West Indies and New Zealand series," Cummins said as quoted by ICC.

Meanwhile, Deepti said, "It's an honour to be voted the ICC Women's Player of the Month for December. I feel very good about my game at the moment and I'm glad that reflected in my performances for India last month against strong opponents. I'll continue to work hard so that I can have more moments like this in the future."

"I'm grateful to have been chosen for this award and the fact that fans around the world also voted for me makes it extra special. I want to thank them and my teammates for helping me win this award," she added.

Cummins overcame fellow Test stars Taijul Islam of Bangladesh and Glenn Phillips of New Zealand to claim the December prize, while Sharma wins ahead of teammate Jemimah Rodrigues and Zimbabwe's Precious Marange. (ANI)