AB scoops top one-day cricket award

8 October 2010

South Africa’s AB de Villiers was justly rewarded for a sensational season when he was named ICC one-day international Player of the Year in Bangaluru, India on Wednesday evening.

In 16 ODIs, De Villiers tallied 855 runs at an average of 71.25. His run rate was a very impressive 103.38 runs per 100 balls faced.

In those matches, De Villiers, who is ranked the number one ODI batsman in the world, scored four fifties and four centuries.

Centuries

His run of centuries began with 121 against England in Cape Town. De Villiers then scored 114 not out versus India in Gwalior and 102 not out against the Indians in Ahmedabad. He followed that up with 102 against the West Indies in Antigua.

After picking up his award, De Villiers told Cricket South Africa: “I’ve really enjoyed this season and it’s great to have been named the ODI Cricketer of the Year.

“It’s a World Cup season and a World Cup is something we would love to win and we rate our chances pretty highly”.

‘Well deserved’

Commenting on De Villiers’ win, South African cricket captain Graeme Smith said: “It is a well deserved reward for all his hard work, dedication and the joy he has brought to cricket fans around the world through his exemplary approach to the game.

“He is a player of whom the Proteas and Cricket South Africa are extremely proud.”

De Villiers was the only South African named in the ICC ODI Team of the Year.

One of the men De Villiers bettered to win the ODI Player of the Year Award was evergreen Indian great Sachin Tendulkar. “The Little Maestro” was, however, named ICC Cricketer of the Year.

Finalist

Hashim Amla was a finalist for the award and also a finalist for Test Cricketer of the Year, but that award went to another Indian star, Virender Sehwag.

Amla was named in the ICC Test Team of the Year, along with Jacques Kallis, ranked sixth among batsmen, and Dale Steyn, the number one test bowler in the world for some time now.

Ryan ten Doeschate of the Netherlands, who was born and educated in South Africa, won the award for the Associate and Affiliate Player of the Year.

A W A R D S

 

• Cricketer of the Year: Sachin Tendulkar (Ind)

 

• Women’s Cricketer of the Year: Shelley Nitschke (Aus)

 

• Test Player of the Year: Virender Sehwag (Ind)

 

• ODI Player of the Year: AB de Villiers (RSA)

 

• Emerging Player of the Year: Steven Finn (Eng)

 

 

• Associate and Affiliate Player of the Year: Ryan ten Doeschate (Ned)

 

• T20 International Performance of the Year: Brendon McCullum (NZ)

 

• Spirit of Cricket: New Zealand

 

• Umpire of the Year: Aleem Dar

 

ICC Test Team of the Year (in batting order)

 

• Virender Sehwag (Ind)

 

• Simon Katich (Aus)

 

• Sachin Tendulkar (Ind)

 

• Hashim Amla (RSA)

 

• Kumar Sangakkara (SL)

 

• Jacques Kallis (RSA)

 

• Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Ind, capt and wk)

 

• Graeme Swann (Eng)

 

• James Anderson (Eng)

 

• Dale Steyn (RSA)

 

• Doug Bollinger (Aus)

 

ICC ODI Team of the Year (in batting order)

 

• Sachin Tendulkar (Ind)

 

• Shane Watson (Aus)

 

• Michael Hussey (Aus)

 

• AB de Villiers (RSA)

 

• Paul Collingwood (Eng)

 

• Ricky Ponting (Aus, capt)

 

• MS Dhoni (Ind, wk)

 

• Daniel Vettori (NZ)

 

• Stuart Broad (Eng)

 

• Doug Bollinger (Aus)

 

• Ryan Harris (Aus)