The 9-member shortlist for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 Player of the Tournament has now been revealed, with fans able to vote for the winner.

The T20 World Cup in Australia has seen some outstanding performances from both individuals and teams, with several games coming down to the wire. After a wild trip, we now have the two finalists, with Pakistan and England advancing to the grand showdown on November 13 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Nine outstanding players have been nominated for the Player of the Tournament shortlist, with all of them excelling and winning games for their respective teams. The shortlist is dominated by players from England and Pakistan, with three nominations from the Three Lions and two from the Men in Green.

Two Indian players and one each from Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka are also on the list of nominees, with fans voting to choose the winner. To assist you decide on the ultimate winner, we look at a list of the nine nominees and examine their efforts in the tournament thus far.

Virat Kohli (India)

The Indian batting legend was instrumental in his team reaching the semi-finals.

Kohli scored 296 runs at a remarkable average of 98.66 in six outings. His runs came at a solid clip of 136.40, and he presently leads the competition in run-scoring. Kohli had four half-centuries in the tournament, including a memorable 82* against Pakistan in India’s triumph in Melbourne.

Suryakumar Yadav (India)

Suryakumar Yadav was undoubtedly India’s most impacting hitter in the competition, hitting some great hits with some of the most adventurous strokes ever seen.

Yadav hit 239 runs in six matches with an incredible strike rate of 189.68. He also had three half-centuries, against the Netherlands, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. Yadav fully declared his entrance on the international stage with his heroics in Australia, while also becoming the world’s No. 1 hitter in the MRF Tyres ICC Men’s T20I Player Rankings.

Shadab Khan (Pakistan)

Shadab Khan has been one of Pakistan’s standout players during their march to the tournament’s final, shining with both bat and ball. He has been a standout player, taking crucial wickets in the middle overs while also excelling as a power-hitter in the middle order.

Shadab’s most important contribution with the bat came in Pakistan’s must-win match against South Africa in Sydney, when he hit a scorching half-century. With the ball, he has taken 10 wickets in six matches, with best figures of 3/22 and an economy rate of 6.59.

Shaheen Afridi (Pakistan)

Shaheen Afridi has slowly but steadily rediscovered his rhythm in the competition, performing admirably in the previous several games. The bowler went wicketless in his first two games but then went on to take 10 wickets in the following four games as Pakistan came back from the brink of elimination to reach the finals.

Overall, he has taken 10 wickets in six matches, with an average of 14.20 and an economy of 6.17. Pakistan will rely on him once more in the final against England.

After weeks of electrifying action, the T20 World Cup is finally coming to its conclusion, with a big encounter between England and Pakistan in the final at Melbourne Cricket Ground. The Pakistan batsmen did not have a great outing in the first innings scoring just 137. England batsmen, who have been fine form, were expected to start off with a bang, and chase the score down easily. However, Shaheen Afridi had other plans.

Pakistan’s premier left-arm pacer struck in the very first over of the run chase. On the final ball of the opening over, Afridi bowled a delivery on the good length area, as the ball cut back in sharply and Hales couldn’t even read what happened. The ball went on to hit the middle stump and Afridi dismissed Hales to give Pakistan first blood in the run chase. The England opener could only muster 1 run from 2 balls.

Sam Curran (England)

In England’s march to the finals, Sam Curran has been the death bowling specialist. He has bowled incredibly well in difficult overs, whether in the Powerplay or at the end when hitters are seeking to tee off.

Curran has 10 wickets at 13.60 and an economy of 7.28 in five matches, including a five-wicket haul against Afghanistan. He will once again play an important part in the final if England is to win the prized trophy.

Read Also: 10 Cricket Records That Will Never Be Broken

Jos Buttler (England)

The England captain has led from the front throughout the competition, getting his teams off to fast starts. His connection with Alex Hales has blossomed, as the duo defeated India in the semi-finals in Adelaide.

His captaincy has also been outstanding, as has his fielding behind the wickets. Buttler has scored 199 runs in five matches at a strike rate of 143.16, including two half-centuries. He has also been dismissed eight times from behind the stumps.

Alex Hales (England)

Alex Hales has made an immediate impact since returning to the England squad following Jonny Bairstow’s injury before to the start of the competition. With 211 runs in five matches at a strike rate of 148.59 and two half-centuries, he is England’s leading run-scorer.

In the semi-final against India, he scored a stunning unbeaten 86, one of the tournament’s best performances. England will be hoping that his superb batsmanship continues in the final against Pakistan.

Sikandar Raza (Zimbabwe)

During the competition, Zimbabwe’s talisman maintained his incredible run in the shortest format. He contributed some crucial runs with the bat while also bowling some useful overs.

He scored 219 runs in eight matches, including one half-century. With stats of 3/25, Raza was also a game-changer with the ball in Australia’s memorable triumph over Pakistan in Perth. He took 10 wickets in total during the competition.

Wanindu Hasaranga (Sri Lanka)

In the competition, the ace spinner was once again Sri Lanka’s talisman with the ball, giving them with some crucial breakthroughs in the middle overs. With 15 wickets in eight matches, Hasaranga is the tournament’s current highest wicket-taker.

His wickets came at an incredible average of 13.26 and a respectable economy of 6.41, with best statistics of 3/8. After taking 16 wickets in the 2021 editions in the UAE and Oman, Hasaranga has a great chance of being the tournament’s highest wicket-taker in back-to-back editions.

The post Shortlist for ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 Player of the Tournament revealed first appeared on NAZING written by Olivia Bradley

The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 concluded on Sunday with England lifting the trophy after beating Pakistan in the final, and here we shall take a look at the best matches from the tournament that left us completely stunned.

Netherlands vs South Africa – An upset of great magnitude

This was considered as a match that South Africa should have won. A win here would have sealed their place in the semi-finals but Netherlands had other ideas.

What transpired in that match was shocking as the Dutch pulled off an upset of huge magnitude, that too in a highly important game, which had so much at stake for as many as three teams.

South Africa had Netherlands under control for the large part of their innings. Even though the Dutch accelerated and added some valuable runs towards the end, 158 was never seen as a total the Proteas couldn’t chase down.

But the pressure of the contest and some fine bowling by the Dutch got the better of the South African batters. The defeat knocked South Africa out of the tournament and cleared the path for Pakistan to the semi-finals after they beat Bangladesh in the very next match.

India vs Pakistan – Virat Kohli produces another innings to remember

The fans were treated to a nerve-wracking contest as Kohli’s masterclass guided India home in a last-ball thriller.

India looked absolutely down and out of the contest when they lost four wickets with just 31 runs on the board while chasing 160. But Kohli produced the innings of his T20I career as he smashed an unbeaten 82 from just 53 deliveries to power India to a thrilling win.

Hardik Pandya also supported him well with a knock of 40 and was involved in an important partnership of 114 that brought India back into the game. The scenes after the match were amazing.

The fans erupted in the stadium, the Indian players ran into the ground and lifted Kohli in their arms and there was joy all around the Indian dugout, and despair in the Pakistani camp. It was a classic contest, a night to remember!

Pakistan vs Zimbabwe – Sikandar Raza’s triple-strike downs Babar Azam’s men

Before Netherlands pulled off a shock defeat over South Africa, this match was seen as an upset of epic proportions.

Everyone backed Pakistan to win ahead of this match and it looked even more likely when Zimbabwe could manage only 130 in their 20 overs. Pakistan were getting on their way well, at a steady rate, but Sikandar Raza’s triple strike destroyed Pakistan’s middle order completely.

Babar Azam’s men needed 11 to win off the last over and they had brought it down to three from the last ball. But the batters failed to make it back for the second run as a run out sparked extraordinary scenes in Perth. It was another contest that Pakistan lost off the last ball, and their chances of securing a semi-final berth after this looked extremely bleak.

Read Also: 10 Cricket Records That Will Never Be Broken

India vs England – The Great Indian mauling

A close contest was expected as two of the tournament favorites were locking horns in the second semi-final in Adelaide. But what turned out was a completely one-sided contest and an absolute mauling of the Indian team, as England chased down 169 with 10 wickets and four overs to spare.

It was the opening duo of Alex Hales and Jos Buttler that did the damage, with both batters remaining unbeaten on 86 and 80 respectively.

England were in control right from the first delivery of the match. The bowlers bowled disciplined lines and lengths to keep the Indian batters quiet. Even though Hardik Pandya launched fireworks towards the end with his 33-ball knock of 63, a target of 168 was just not enough to contain a dangerous English batting line-up.

India vs South Africa – The Proteas edge past Rohit Sharma’s men in a low-scoring thriller

A quality game can always be expected when two of the best sides in the world clash and that’s exactly what we got when India and South Africa locked horns in Perth in the Super 12s.

The Proteas destroyed India’s top-order completely but Suryakumar Yadav’s majestic knock of 68 from 40 deliveries helped India post 133/9 in their quota of overs.

It looked quite tough to defend such a low total but the Indian bowlers made quite the game out of it. Mohammed Shami was brilliant as he conceded just 13 runs in his four overs. The others also stepped up as they took the match right down to the wire.

But some sloppy fielding by the Indians and two great knocks by David Miller and Aiden Markram helped south Africa edge past India.

England vs Pakistan: T20 World Cup final – As it happened

For Pakistan, the eerie similarities to 1992 fell short towards the end. Outplayed in the first half, they clawed their way back with the ball but just didn’t have enough runs on the board… and had Stokes to counter.

England, meanwhile, kept rolling. Fourteen off three balls after Afridi’s injury changed it all. England is now the first team to hold both white-ball World Cups. Their brand of attacking cricket has transformed the way the game is played in this format.

Crucially, it’s a style that’s become so ingrained in the team’s mentality that it isn’t affected by changes in personnel. There’s been a change in captain and coach since their win in the 2019 ODI World Cup but the approach remains the same.

They were always in control of this final. Sam Curran was the standout performer, but there were important contributions from numerous players – Rashid, Stokes, and Ali, Jordan – strewn across the XI. They’ve already picked up two World Cup medals, and if they keep playing the same way, there’ll be a few more to come.

Sam Curran chosen as Player of the Tournament

A three-for in the final, the only bowler with a five-wicket haul in the World Cup and 13 wickets across the tournament. Sam Curran, who was also the Man of the Match in the final, also picks up the Player of the Tournament award.

Just a reminder that he’s only 24.

The post A look at the best matches of T20 World Cup 2022 first appeared on NAZING written by Olivia Bradley