DUBAI: Sri Lankan batter Kamindu Mendis was awarded the ICC Men’s Player of the Month for March 2024 following his impressive comeback during the recent tour of Bangladesh.
Mendis, who rose to prominence following his impressive Test returns, beat out stiff competition from Ireland’s Mark Adair and New Zealand’s Matt Henry to claim his first ICC Men’s Player of the Month award.
The 25-year-old batter became the third player from Sri Lanka to win the prestigious award after spinner Prabath Jayasuriya and star all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga.
Mendis expressed his joy after winning the award, calling it a source of motivation for his career.
“I am extremely happy to be named the ICC Men’s Player of the Month, which I consider an inspiration for my international career,” Mendis said.
“A recognition such as this motivates and makes us as players work more and more to deliver in the middle for the team, country, and fans.
“I also wish the very best for the other two players who were nominated along with me, Mark Adair and Matt Henry, whom I consider excellent players and good competitors.”
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Mendis made a comeback to the national side after two years and scored 68 runs in three T20Is against Bangladesh, including a 37 off 27 in the second game.
However, he proved his mettle in the following Test cricket against the hosts, scoring 367 runs in the two-match series.
During the first Test match, he and Dhananjaya de Silva rescued the team from a score of 57-5 and made history by becoming only the third pair from the same country to score centuries in both innings.
Before them, Australia’s Chappell brothers, Greg and Ian, and Pakistan’s Misbah-ul-Haq and Azhar Ali had achieved this feat.
He continued his brilliant form in the second match and scored an unbeaten 92 in the first innings.
However, he narrowly missed the feat of a third Test century in consecutive innings as the last man Asitha Fernando was run out for a duck.
He also picked three wickets during the Test series, helping Sri Lanka whitewash Bangladesh.