Hayley Matthews, the captain of the West Indies women’s cricket team, has been awarded the prestigious title of the International Cricket Council’s Women’s Twenty20 Player of the Year.
The 25-year-old outshone her competitors, including Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu, England’s Sophie Ecclestone, and Australia’s Ellyse Perry, as she received the honor through a combined vote from the ICC Voting Academy and global fans. Matthews showcased dominant form during the evaluation period in the previous year, amassing 700 runs at an impressive average of 63 from 14 matches, including one century and four half-centuries.
Expressing her gratitude, Matthews said, “I’ve been pretty blessed to have a good year wearing the West Indies colors, performing really well and helping the team. This is one of those awards that I’m going to cherish forever, and knowing that it can make our West Indies fans at home in the Caribbean and around the world happy is what motivates me to go out there and do my best.”
Eight consecutive Player-of-the-Match awards
Matthews, who made her international debut at the age of 16, enjoyed a remarkable streak of eight consecutive Player-of-the-Match awards. This included two accolades in the T20 World Cup held in South Africa in February and all three awards in the subsequent two T20 series against Ireland and Australia. Besides her batting prowess, Matthews is known for her effectiveness as an off-spinner, having secured 19 wickets last year at an average of 16.
Earlier this week, she was also honored with a place in the ICC T20I Team of the Year, further highlighting her outstanding contributions to the sport.
In addition to Matthews’ recognition, India’s batting sensation Suryakumar Yadav received the men’s T20I Player of the Year award.
