5 most deserving contenders for the 2018 ICC Test Player of the Year award

It is that time of year again when the International Cricket Council (ICC) honours cricketers for their performances in 2018. The previous year was a great one for Test cricket fans, and some very competitive matches were played in diverse conditions.

It was very exciting to see strong competition between bat and ball. There were also some controversies in 2018. But, for the most part, it was refreshing to see quite a few players reaching their peak form in the past year. Here are five of the top contenders for the prestigious "ICC Test Player of the Year" award for 2018.

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#5 Nathan Lyon

Nathan Lyon

Nathan Lyon was arguably the best spinner of the year. With 49 wickets in 10 games in 2018, he did really well for a team that was going through tough times. He took one less wicket than Sri Lanka's Dilruwan Perera (50) in the whole year, but the latter had played one more match in the year. While Lyon performed well everywhere he played, his competitors couldn't adapt to different pitches.

With 21 wickets in 4 matches in Australia, 16 wickets in 4 matches in South Africa and 12 wickets in 2 matches in the UAE against Pakistan, Lyon proved his mettle on numerous occasions. There was no spinner who could match his ability to adapt to different conditions all over the world.

Australia was struggling due to the suspensions on David Warner, Cameron Bancroft and Steve Smith. However, with a rampant Pat Cummins for company, Nathan Lyon formed the core of a strong Aussie bowling attack. Though their batsmen struggled, these two bowlers kept their focus and made it tougher for the opposition batsmen to dominate Australia.

Though Australia could only manage 3 Test victories in the whole year, Lyon's consistency with the ball cannot be overlooked. He bowled the most overs (615.3) in 2018, which is a tremendous amount of workload, even for a spinner. He continues to remain an integral cog of the Australian lineup.

#4 Jason Holder

Jason Holder

The West Indies Test skipper Jason Holder had an amazing year as an individual performer. He played only 6 Tests in 2018, but he took 33 wickets at an incredible bowling average of 12.39. He took 4 five-wicket hauls in the year and worked in tandem with Shannon Gabriel and Kemar Roach to trouble the teams from the subcontinent.

With bat in hand as well, he contributed to the team. At a healthy average of 37.33, he scored 336 runs in the year. He hit two fifties, both at very crucial times. He helped his team win the Gros Islet Test with an unbeaten 15 in the 2nd innings to chase down a tricky total.

Holder scored a fighting half-century against India in Hyderabad. He played a role of linking the top and middle order of West Indies batting with the tail. 2018 was a great year for the all-rounder and he certainly did silence his critics with those great performances.

#3 Jasprit Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah made his Test debut in 2018 and what a superb year it was for him. With 49 wickets from 10 Tests in 2018, he was the best Indian pacer of the year. In his debut series in South Africa, he scalped 14 wickets in 3 Tests. In England, after being out of the side because of injury in the first two Tests, he was called in for last three matches. He responded with 14 wickets.

Bumrah reached his prime against Australia at the end of the year. With 21 wickets from 4 tests, he was the joint highest wicket-taker of the series with Nathan Lyon. He troubled all the Aussie batsmen throughout the series.

His unique action, superb execution of skills, great stamina and great cricketing brain gave him the edge over a lot of batsmen. He always was known as a fantastic limited-overs bowler. At times, the seamer produced unplayable deliveries to dismiss well-set batsmen of the opposition.

#2 Kagiso Rabada

Kagiso Rabada

If South Africa were to win all the Test series against top opponents at their home in 2018, Kagiso Rabada had to be at his best. And the Proteas found their star pacer to be at his best, all throughout the year.

Rabada scalped 52 wickets from 11 Tests at an impressive average of 20.07. Against a strong Indian team, he scalped 15 wickets and was the joint highest wicket-taker of the series along with Morkel and Shami.

In the home series against Australia, Rabada ran with all of his intent and picked up 23 wickets in 4 Tests. He was the leading wicket-taker and was also named the Player of the Series.

Rabad did well in Asia too, as he picked up 8 wickets in 2 Tests at a very good average of 23.87 against Sri Lanka. In the opening Test against Pakistan in 2018, he picked up 6 wickets. He was valuable as a night-watchman at many times as he not only protected his wicket but also scored valuable runs for South Africa.

#1 Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli

Indian skipper Virat Kohli was undoubtedly the best Test batsman of 2018. If there were any doubts about him facing the red ball in English conditions, he cleared all of them. Scoring at least one century per series, he led from the front as a captain. Kohli topped the charts for most Test runs in 2018 by scoring 1322 runs in 13 matches at an average of 55.08.

A masterful, counterattacking 153 against a tough South African pace attack in a vicious pitch at Centurian started the glorious year for Kohli. His year ended with a similar knock of 123 in a tough pitch on a hot day at Perth.

However, the best of Kohli in 2018 came against England. Last time, when India toured England for a Test series in 2014, he had failed miserably with the bat. This time around, with 2 hundreds and 3 fifties, he ended up as the leading run-scorer by a long way. James Anderson couldn't get his wicket even once in the series, and the Indian captain proved his worth as a Test batsman in adverse conditions.

In addition to his batting, Kohli's captaincy was impressive too. His bowling attack looked inspired to pick up 20 wickets every match. By the end of the year, India would register four memorable overseas Test victories. 2018 was the year for Kohli to prove that he could score runs in tough conditions in away Tests. The manner in which he scored those runs makes him a great contender for this award.