New Delhi:On Monday, the International Cricket Council announced the nominees for the ICC Player of the Month Award for March. Indian stars Sanju Samson and are in the running for the award, along with South Africa's Connor Esterhuizen. The ICC also announced the monthly nominees for women's cricket. Melie Kerr from New Zealand, Beth Mooney from Australia, and Ayabonga Khaka from South Africa were all on the list.
There will be a lot of competition between Samson and Bumrah, and Esterhuizen will also be a tough opponent for the men's award. In India's last three games in the T20 World Cup 2026, Samson played very well. He scored 97* in a virtual quarterfinal against the West Indies to help India chase down 196 and get to the semifinals. There, he scored 89 against England as the Men in Blue made 253/7.
In the final, the wicketkeeper batter was on fire again, scoring 89 runs against New Zealand as the hosts scored 255/5 to win the World Cup. Samson was named Player of the Tournament for his great play.
Bumrah's magic went on in the World Cup.At the same time, Bumrah was in amazing form during the tournament, finishing with 14 wickets in eight innings, which was the most in the World Cup. His play in the semifinals and finals of the World Cup was very important for India to win the tournament. In a game where 195/4 were scored, he took 2/36 against the West Indies.
His economical spells helped India stop the English rampage in the semifinals. Bumrah gave up 33 runs in a game where both teams scored 499 runs. The fast bowler took 4/15 in the final, and India won by 96 runs.
Esterhuizen had a great first game.Proteas wicketkeeper-batter Connor Esterhuizen had a great first T20I series against New Zealand, scoring 200 runs in five games with an average of 50.00 and a strike rate of 145.98.
Esterhuizen had a great SA20 campaign and then made an immediate impact in international T20 cricket by scoring 45 runs without getting out in his first game. In the fourth game, he scored his first T20I half-century, getting Player of the Match for a blistering 57 runs off just 33 balls.
Kerr, Mooney, and Khaka are up for a women's award.In March, New Zealand captain Melie Kerr played very well, especially in the home series against Zimbabwe and South Africa. Her strong all-around performances in four ODIs and six T20Is put her at the top of the ICC Women's T20I all-rounder rankings.
In March, Beth Mooney had a great run of form, giving stability and leadership to Australia's batting across all formats. Ayabonga Khaka also stood out with the ball during South Africa's tour of New Zealand. She was the top wicket-taker for her team in the T20I series.