Former India skipper and talismanic batter Virat Kohli was on Thursday nominated for the ICC Men’s Player of the Month Award for the very first time.
Along with Kohli, in-form South Africa batter David Miller and Zimbabwe all-rounder Sikandar Raza have also been nominated for the honour.
Kohli amassed 205 runs across the calendar month of October, showed glimpses of his fine form.
He played an era-defining innings of 82 not out in front of a packed house at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) as India claimed a famous four-wicket victory against arch-rivals Pakistan in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup.
On the other hand, Miller is also named on the men’s shortlist for the very first time. He began the month in the bilateral series against India, amassing 117 runs across three ODIs and 125 runs in two T20Is. He had played a brutal knock of unbeaten 106 off 79 balls in Guwahati last month.
Raza, meanwhile, is going through a purple patch for performances in 2022 and is nominated for the second time in three months. Earlier in August, he had claimed the award as he played a key role in sealing Zimbabwe’s qualification through to the Super 12 stages of the ongoing T20 World Cup.
Scoring 145 runs and taking nine wickets at a formidable average of 14.66 from his six T20Is, he won three Player of the Match awards, including for his contribution in the 31-run win against Ireland (82 not out) and the shock one-run victory against Pakistan (3/25).