Virat Kohli, Smriti Mandhana Win International Cricketer Of The Year Award

Just days ahead of the World Cup, India skipper Virat Kohli has received some much-needed confidence booster. After a forgettable IPL where his team finished last, the 30-year old has bagged the International Cricketer of the year award. Along with Kohli, India women team’s opener Smriti Mandhana was honoured with the International women cricketer of the year award during the CEAT International Cricket Awards 2019.

Earlier this year, Kohli created history by becoming the first player in history to win the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for ICC Cricketer of the Year, as well as the ICC Men’s Test Player of the Year and the ICC ODI Player of the Year awards. The right-handed batsman was also named captain of ICC’s Test and ODI teams of 2018 for a fabulous run in international cricket.

Also Read: India Will Miss Rishabh Pant At The World Cup: Sourav Ganguly

Last year, Virat Kohli scored 1,322 runs at an average of 55.08 in 13 Tests with five hundreds. In ODIs, he amassed 1,202 runs in 14 games at an astonishing average of 133.55 with six centuries. He also scored 211 runs in 10 T20Is. Kohli is currently the second leading centurion in ODIs. So far, he has accumulated 10843 runs in the ODI and scored 6613 runs in the longest format.

On the other hand, Mandhana had won the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Award for the ICC Women’s Cricketer of the Year and also been named as the ICC Women’s ODI Player of the Year.  Last year, she had scored 669 runs at an average of 66.90 in 12 ODIs and 622 runs at a strike-rate of 130.67 in 25 T20Is. Meanwhile, former India allrounder Mohinder Amarnath was conferred with the Life Time Achievement award during the event.

Also Read: MS Dhoni Goes Wrong at Times, Says Kuldeep Yadav

Kohli will be looking to use the award as a motivation when he leads India in the upcoming World Cup. Kohli had another forgettable IPL season as a captain and will be desperate to turn things around. The World Cup will start on May 30 while India will kickstart their campaign on June 5 against South Africa.

Also Read: Shane Watson Battled For Chennai Super Kings With Bloodied Knee