The ICC has announced the women’s Player of the Month nominees for July 2024, and the list contains only openers. The ICC has shortlisted Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu and India’s opening pair of Smriti Mandhana and Shefali Verma. Here is a brief overview of the performances of all of the aforementioned players, which have earned them nominations for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award.
Chamari Athapaththu (Sri Lanka)
Legendary Sri Lankan batsman Chamari Athapaththu gained even more accolades in July when she defeated seven-time champion India in the Women’s Asia Cup 2024. This victory was another achievement made possible by her leadership over the past 12 months, during which Sri Lanka achieved several firsts, including winning their first-ever T20I series against South Africa and England and qualifying for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in 2024.
For a number of years, Athapaththu has been the foundation of Sri Lanka’s batting and was instrumental in their perfect run through the Asia Cup. Athapaththu replied magnificently against Malaysia, smashing a career-high 119* after making just 12 in Sri Lanka’s opening encounter against Bangladesh. Following an undefeated 49* against Thailand in the last group match, the tournament’s semifinal and final saw back-to-back, match-winning fifties against Pakistan (63) and India (61).
Her 304 runs at a respectable strike rate of 146.85 would have earned her Player of the Tournament honors, but the skipper also struck three times with the ball, including in the final against India. Athapaththu is aiming for her third ICC Women’s Player of the Month title, having already won two of them.
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Smriti Mandhana (India)
Smriti Mandhana, who won the title in June 2024, is up for a second consecutive nomination for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award.
The opener started July on a career-high 149 in the one-off Test match against South Africa, continuing her successful streak. Her 292 runs for the first wicket with Shafali Verma was the greatest partnership for the first wicket in Women’s Test history. Thanks to their stand, India amassed a massive first-inning total and won the match by ten wickets.
In the T20I series against South Africa, Mandhana responded with 100 runs from two innings, including 54* in the last T20I that helped India win by 10 wickets and square the series.
The runs kept coming in the Asia Cup, as Mandhana led India in scoring with 173 runs in the tournament; she was the top scorer of India in the Women’s Asia Cup final with 60 off of 47 balls. Mandhana finished the T20 International season with 273 runs at an average of 68.25 and a strike rate of 139.28 in July.
Shafali Verma (India)
Shefali Verma, the opening partner of Mandhana, is the third candidate for July Player of the Month. During that time, the right-handed batter amassed 245 T20I runs and 229 Test runs.
After Mithali Raj, Shafali became the second Indian woman to reach a double century during her remarkable opening stand with Mandhana. In 194 balls, she accomplished the fastest-ever double hundred in women’s test history. Her score of 205 was the second-highest score by an Indian women cricketer in the test that helped India achieve a record 603/6, which is the highest Women’s Test total ever.
With a wicket in the second innings and a blistering 24* in the chase, Shafali added even more to India’s victory. Shafali continued her run-scoring streak in the Asia Cup after adding 45 more runs in the T20I match against South Africa.
Her 200 runs came at an amazing strike rate of 140.84, making her the second-highest run scorer in the competition. A few of her standout innings during the competition were a rapid 40 from 29 against Pakistan, the archrivals, and a career-best 81 from 48 with 12 fours and a six against Nepal.
