Aasif wins ICC Spirit of Cricket Award 2022

By A Staff Reporter

Kathmandu, Jan 27 :  International Cricket Council (ICC) awarded Nepal wicketkeeper Aasif Sheikh with the ICC Spirit of Cricket Award 2022 on Thursday.

ICC on Thursday said wicketkeeper Sheikh has been named the recipient of the award for his decision not to run out Andy McBrine after the Irish star tripped while attempting a run during the Quadrangular series in Oman on February 2022. 

He is the first Nepali player to win the award. The ICC Spirit of Cricket Award is annually awarded by the world cricket’s governing body to recognise the player or team upholding the spirit of the game.

What happened?

Nepal and Ireland faced off in the sixth match of the Quadrangular series in Oman on 14 February 2022. Ireland was put in to bat first but Nepal had the scoring rate on a leash by picking up regular wickets.

At 113/8 at the end of 18 overs, Ireland needed a late flourish with the bat to post a fighting total.

Kamal Singh Airee was tasked with bowling the 19th over. Off the third ball, Mark Adair went for a big heave over leg-side but the ball hit his leg and dropped towards the leg side. The bowler, in his attempt to retrieve the ball, collided with non-striker Andy McBrine, as a result of which the Irish batter tripped and fell halfway on the pitch.

Airee quickly got to the ball and threw it to keeper Aasif Sheikh, at which point McBrine got back up but was well short of his crease. However, Aasif decided not to whip the bails off, a gesture that received widespread recognition across the cricketing fraternity.

Ireland ended up posting 127 and Nepal fell 17 runs short as they were bowled out for 111.

For the gesture, Aasif Sheikh bagged the Spirit of Cricket Award.

This spirit is described in the preamble to the laws of cricket: “Cricket is a game that owes much of its unique appeal to the fact that it should be played not only within its laws but also within the spirit of the game. Any action which is seen to abuse this spirit causes injury to the game itself.”

The preamble goes on to say: “The spirit of the game involves respect for:  “Your opponents, your own captain and team, the role of the umpires and the game’s traditional values.”

Babar  cricketer of the year

Pakistan all-format captain Babar Azam was named the men’s player of the year by the International Cricket Council on Thursday, AP reported.

Babar and England’s Nat Sciver were picked as the one-day international players of 2022 and England test captain Ben Stokes was judged the best men’s test cricketer.

Babar led Pakistan to the finals of two Twenty20 tournaments last year — the World Cup and Asia Cup — and scored nearly 2,600 international runs in all formats at an average of 54. Nobody else passed 2,000.

He got his second straight ODI men’s award — the first to receive consecutive awards since Virat Kohli in 2017-18 — for leading Pakistan to wins in all three of its ODI series and scoring 50 or more in eight of the nine matches.

Sciver became the first English women’s winner of the ODI award since Sarah Taylor in 2014.