PCB Awards: Rizwan declared ‘Most Valuable Cricketer’

LAHORE: Mohammad Rizwan has won the PCB’s Most Valuable Cricketer of the Year award for his stellar performance in 2021.

Rizwan scored 455 Test, 134 ODI and 1,326 T20I runs, besides accounting for 56 batsmen behind the wickets across all formats. Rizwan beat Babar Azam, Hasan Ali and Shaheen Shah Afridi, who also had an impressive and outstanding year reflected through Pakistan’s overall performance in 2021.

Rizwan was also unanimously selected as the T20I Cricketer of the Year. “I feel humbled and honoured to have been adjudged Pakistan’s Most Valuable Cricketer of 2021. This is the PCB’s most prestigious award and to be recognised for my contributions in the team’s superlative performances across all formats in 2021 in such a way gives me tremendous satisfaction and happiness,” Rizwan said in a statement.

“I thought I had an exceptional year in the shortest format of the game when I was able to hit a century early in the year against South Africa and then carry that confidence and momentum for the rest of the year. I give a lot of credit to our bowlers who bowled their hearts out and didn’t let the pressure get onto the batters by maintaining sustained pressure on the opponents throughout the year.”

Hasan Ali won the Test Cricketer of the Year for bagging 41 wickets in nine Tests. Pakistan all-format captain Babar Azam bagged the ODI Cricketer of the Year award for accumulating 405 runs in six ODIs with two centuries and a half-century.

PCB Chairman Ramiz Raja congratulated the award winners. “They deserve all the applause and accolades for their tremendous consistency across all formats in difficult times that inspired their sides to outstanding performances throughout 2021, which have been widely acknowledged by the Pakistan cricket fans,” he said.

List of Award winners

Impactful performance of the year – Shaheen Shah Afridi 

Emerging Cricketer of the Year – Mohammad Wasim Jnr 

ODI Cricketer of the Year – Babar Azam 

Women’s Cricketer of the Year – Nida Dar 

Test Cricketer of the Year – Hasan Ali 

T20I Cricketer of the Year – M Rizwan

Spirit of Cricket – Pakistan cricket team’s visit to the Namibia cricket team’s dressing room following their 45 runs victory to congratulate the Namibian side for qualifying for their maiden  T20 World Cup 2021 and then progressing to the Super-12 stage.

Umpire of the Year – Asif Yaqoob (selected by the PCB’s elite match officials)

Domestic Cricketer of the Year – Sahibzada Farhan 

Most Valuable Cricketer of the Year – M Rizwan