Pat Cummins, Alyssa Healy grab top honours at Australian Cricket Awards

Pat Cummins and Alyssa Healy capped a sensational cricketing year with the prestigious Allan Border medal and Belinda Clark Award, the top male and female individual honours at the Australian cricket’s award night on Monday. Cummins amassed 156 votes, finishing ahead of Nathan Lyon (150) and Aaron Finch (146) to claim the Player of the Year. Usman Khawaja and Marcus Stoinis (102 each) took the next couple of positions to round off the top five. The 25-year-old took 44 Test wickets during the voting period (9 January 2018 – 7 January, 2019), in addition to two half-centuries. Cummins, also became the first player besides Steve Smith or David Warner to wear the medal since 2014. The fast bowling all-rounder joined a select club of former Allan Border Medal winners: Steve Waugh, Glenn McGrath, Matthew Hayden, Adam Gilchrist, Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke, Shane Watson, Smith and Warner. While, Lyon was awarded Men’s Test Player of the Year and became the first-ever finger spinner to receive the honour. The off-spinner took 49 wickets in 10 Tests at an average of 34.80, finishing as the highest wicket-takers for the national side. Besides being named the female cricketer of the year, Healy swept the ODI and the T20 player of the year award as well. In six ODIs, Healy smashed 329 runs at an average of 54.83 and followed it up by being named as ICC’s T20I Player of the Year, after her 225 runs at an average of 56.25 helped Australia clinch their fourth World T20 trophy. In a more difficult year for the Australian ODI side, consistent performer Marcus Stoinis offered a silver lining. The seam-bowling all-rounder was named the Men’s ODI Player of the Year. Australia ODI side won just two of 13 matches played during the voting period and with Stoinis being the only player to have played in all of them. Stoinis (30 votes) edged past skipper Aaron Finch (22 votes) to win the award. In the shortest format of the game, Glenn Maxwell won his second T20 International Player of the Year Award. Maxwell, who previously won the award in 2015, becomes the third multiple winner of the men’s T20 player after Shane Watson (2012, 2013 and 2017) and Finch (2014, 2018). Maxwell played all 19 T20 games for Australia during the period, scoring 506 runs at 36.14 with a strike rate of 143.75. With the ball Maxwell claimed nine wickets off the 17 overs he bowled, conceding 7.59 runs per over. New South Wales and Sydney Sixers captain, Moises Henriques, was named as Australia Cricket Awards’ inaugural Community Champion for his role in raising awareness with regard to mental health issues surrounding the game. Meanwhile, Matthew Wade, the Tasmanian and Hobart Hurricanes wicket-keeper batsman, bagged the Men’s Domestic Player of the Year award while Western Australia and Perth Scorchers’ Heather Graham won the corresponding award for the women category.

Hi Peter... just woke up to this amazing news in Dubai. My family and I are deeply honoured to be part of a incredible and distinguished group of talented people. Sorry I can’t be there due to my coaching duties with @IsbUnited https://t.co/GEpb9xIHqq

— Dean Jones AM (@ProfDeano) February 11, 2019

Former cricketer and now a broadcaster and also a coach Dean Jones was inducted into the Australian Cricketers Hall of Fame. Billy Murdoch and Cathryn Fitzpatrick, too were honoured for their services to the game.

Here’s a is a full list of the winners: Male One-Day International Player of the Year: Marcus Stoinis Female One Day International Player of the Year: Alyssa Healy Betty Wilson Young Cricketer of the Year: Georgia Wareham Bradman Young Cricketer of the Year: Will Pucovski Male Test Player of the Year: Nathan Lyon Community Champion Award: Moises Henriques Female Domestic Player of the Year: Heather Graham Male Domestic Player of the Year: Matthew Wade Female Twenty20 International Player of the Year: Alyssa Healy Male Twenty20 International Player of the Year: Glenn Maxwell Inductees into Australian Cricket Hall of Fame: Dean Jones, Billy Murdoch and Cathryn Fitzpatrick Belinda Clark Award: Alyssa Healy Allan Border Medal: Pat Cummins