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Young England batting sensation Harry Brook was named as the ICC Player of the Month for February 2023 for his splendid performances with the bat, announced the governing body of the sport on Monday.
Harry Brook, the rising English star, has beaten stiff competition from India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and West Indies spinner Gudakesh Motie to emerge as the winner for the award. Brook took his budding Test career to greater heights in February, scoring two fifties and a hundred. The 24-year-old scored just six runs in his first cricketing engagement of the month, an ODI against South Africa. However, he picked up the pace after switching to Test cricket, a format where his performances during the tour of Pakistan had seen him win the ICC Men's Player of the Month for December 2022. In the first Test against New Zealand at Mount Maunganui, Brook hit half-centuries in both innings. Coming in at number five in the first innings, Brook smashed 15 fours and a six during his blistering 89 from 81 deliveries. In the second dig, Brook got a rapid 54 from 41, hitting seven fours and two sixes during his knock. He was awarded the Player of the Match award for his efforts in an emphatic England win. Things still got better at a personal level for Brook in the second Test at Wellington. Walking in at a precarious 21/3 in England's first innings, the Yorkshire batter smashed a career-best 186 from 176 balls, which saw him hit 24 fours and five sixes. His stand of 302 runs with Joe Root, helped England into the driving seat. His medium pace also earned him a maiden wicket in the game, that of the renowned New Zealand batter Kane Williamson. Brook was unfortunate to get a diamond duck during the second innings, as England went on to lose the game by one run. Still, his efforts saw him earn the Player of the Series award. The results of his consistent exploits in the longer format are some really astonishing statistics. In six Tests and 10 innings so far, Brook has scored 809 runs at an average of 80.90, with a strike rate of 98.77. He has four centuries and three fifties in the longer format. After winning the award for the second time, an elated Brook said, "To win this award twice in a matter of months is a real honour. I would like to thank my teammates and management of the England teams, who have been supportive and back me to play to my strengths." "It has been a pretty good start to the year and I hope that we can continue to build on what will be a huge summer and winter for the Men's teams with an Ashes and aiming to win the 50-over ICC Men's Cricket World Cup in India in the autumn, which I am aiming to be part of both squads," concluded Brook. (ANI)
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