ICC recently announced the nominees for the ICC Emerging Men’s Cricketer of the Year 2023 Award. There were four nominees and the result would be decided by voting. It is an interesting award because, in recent years, youngsters have done well at the highest level of the game. Moreover, there were plenty of youngsters who were in top form last year. On that note, here, we take a look at two players who deserve to win the ICC Emerging Men’s Cricketer of the Year Award.
1) Rachin Ravindra
Rachin Ravindra had a normal start to the year. While everyone knew of his potential, no one expected him to turn up the way he did at the 2023 ODI World Cup. To play at No.3 in the absence of Kane Williamson and to then open the innings, Rachin had a terrific campaign, finishing as one of the highest run-getters.
It is not easy for a youngster to do well consistently over a long tournament. However, Rachin did that despite facing several challenges such as tough opposition and different conditions. Yet, he did well. On top of this, wherever he could, he also contributed with the ball. Hence, he is on this list.
2) Dilshan Madushanka
Dilshan Madushanka is one of the players who deserve to win the ICC Emerging Men’s Cricketer of the Year Award. If this award has to go to a bowler, then Dilshan will compete with Gerald Coetzee. It is a tough competition but Dilshan deserves it more, considering the impact he has had for Sri Lanka.
While Coetzee had some experienced bowlers around him, Dilshan mostly did all the job by himself. While he is excellent with the new ball, he also displayed his skills at the other phases of the innings. While Coetzee’s attributes helped him collect a lot of wickets, Dilshan also applied them by reading the situation of the game and picking many scalps. Therefore, he is a better pick for this award.
