ICC Player of the Month (September): Abhishek, Kuldeep among nominees
What's the story
Indian cricketers Abhishek Sharma and Kuldeep Yadav are among the three nominees for the ICC Men's Player of the Month award for September 2025. The duo starred in India's title-winning 2025 Men's T20 Asia Cup campaign. They are joined by Zimbabwe's Brian Bennett, who scored 497 runs across nine T20Is last month. The nominations recognize their outstanding performances in international cricket during September.
Stellar show
Abhishek's stellar run in Asia Cup
Abhishek was India's standout performer in the recently concluded T20 Asia Cup. He scored 314 runs from seven matches at an impressive strike rate of 200. The dasher recorded 50-plus scores against Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. The left-handed batsman also made history by achieving the highest batting rating ever recorded in the ICC T20I Batting Rankings with a whopping 931 points to his name. Abhishek's current T20I strike rate reads 196.07.
Bowling prowess
Most wickets in Asia Cup
On the other hand, Kuldeep led India's spin attack. He finished as the highest wicket-taker in the Asia Cup. The 30-year-old left-arm wrist spinner scalped 17 wickets from seven matches at an average and economy rate of 9.29 and 6.27, respectively. His best performance came in the tournament opener against UAE, where he took four wickets for just seven runs.
Bennett's impact
Bennett's exceptional run in T20 World Cup Africa Regional Final
Zimbabwean cricketer Brian Bennett also made a mark with his performances. He hammered 497 runs from nine T20Is at an incredible average of 55.22 and a strike rate of 165.66. He shone in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup Africa Regional Final, scoring 72, 65, and 111. He helped Zimbabwe qualify for the ICC T20 World Cup scheduled to take place in 2026.
ICC award
About the prestigious awardÂ
The ICC acknowledges brilliant performances every month in men's and women's categories internationally, and therefore, those players are nominated. Eventually, one of them is picked as the winner for that particular month. The cricket board has been handing out these monthly awards since the start of 2021. Renowned journalists and former cricketers form the voting panel. Meanwhile, the public has 10% voting rights.