DUBAI: Pakistan captain Babar Azam has earned the reward for his exceptional performance last month and has been crowned the ICC Men’s Player of the Month for August 2023.
Babar Azam won the coveted award for the third time by overcoming teammate Shadab Khan and West Indies hard-hitter Nicholas Pooran and has expressed his jubilation upon winning the honour.
“I am delighted to be named ICC Player of the Month for August 2023,” Babar said.
“The past month has been extraordinary for my team and I as we have put some terrific performances. With the Asia Cup coming to Pakistan after such a long time, it was great to play in front of the passionate and cricket-loving crowds of Multan and Lahore. That I scored my second ODI score of 150-plus in front of my own people in Multan doubled the joy.
“I am looking forward to making the most of the form as we head into an exciting phase of cricket with the backend of the Asia Cup nearing and the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup around the corner. My team and I are eager to bring joy and happiness to the millions of Pakistan fans.”
Babar Azam enjoyed an excellent run of form in the ODI format last month and has maintained his top spot in the ICC Men’s ODI Batter Rankings.
He scored two fifties in the three-match ODI series against Afghanistan in Sri Lanka before notching a stunning 151 off 131 balls against Nepal in the opening game of the ACC Men’s Asia Cup 2023.
During this innings, the Pakistan skipper achieved a historic milestone, becoming the fastest player in the game’s history to reach 19 ODI centuries.
This century marked his 31st century across all formats for Pakistan, placing him on par with legends Javed Miandad and Saeed Anwar.
He now stands just behind Younis Khan (41), Mohammad Yousuf (39), and Inzamam-ul-Haq (35) in terms of centuries for Pakistan.
He also stands behind only Saeed Anwar (20) in terms of most ODI centuries for Pakistan.