India and Australia dominate ICC Awards of the Decade

Much like how India have dominated world cricket in the past decade, Indian male cricketers rightly dominated proceedings in the recently-announced ICC Awards of the Decade.

Australia, however, had the overall bragging rights after winning in four categories.

Virat Kohli won both the Sir Garfield Sobers Award for ICC Male Cricketer of the Decade and ODI Cricketer of the Decade. The India captain scored 20,396 runs at an average of 56.97 – including 66 hundreds and 94 fifties – during the stipulated period.

All three aforementioned numbers are the most for any cricketer in the past decade. A member of India’s 2011 World Cup-winning side, Kohli was also the only player to have scored more than 10,000 ODI runs in the 2010s.

The captain of that victorious World Cup side - MS Dhoni - won the ICC Spirit of Cricket Award of the Decade. The former India captain won the fans' hearts and votes for calling back England batsman Ian Bell after a controversial run-out during the 2011 Nottingham Test.

Former Australia captain Steve Smith won the ICC Men’s Test Cricketer of the Decade after scoring 7,040 runs at a stunning average of 65.79 (highest in top 50) – including 26 hundreds and 28 fifties – in the period.

Afghanistan leg-spinner Rashid Khan headlined the 20-over format. The 22-year-old won the ICC Men’s T20I Cricketer of the Decade after finishing the decade with 89 wickets (highest among the lot) at a remarkable average of 12.62.

However, there was a clean sweep in the women’s category as Australia all-rounder Ellyse Perry won all three awards – Rachael Heyhoe-Flint Award for ICC Female Cricketer of the Decade, ODI Cricketer of the Decade and T20I Cricketer of the Decade.

The 30-year-old scored 4,349 runs and picked up 213 wickets in the last decade. A breakdown of the statistics would amount to 2,621 runs at an average of 68.97 and 98 wickets at 25.09 apiece in ODIs.

In the 20-over format, the New South Wales star scored 1,155 runs at an average of 30.39 and picked up 89 wickets at 20.64. Australia’s middle-order mainstay also won the 2013 World Cup and four T20I World Cups in the process.

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List of ICC Awards of the Decade

Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Decade: Virat Kohli

Men’s T20I Cricketer of the Decade: Rashid Khan

Men’s Test Cricketer of the Decade: Steve Smith

Men’s Cricketer of the Decade: Virat Kohli

Women’s ODI Cricketer of the Decade: Ellyse Perry

Women’s T20I Cricketer of the Decade: Ellyse Perry

Women’s Cricketer of the Decade: Ellyse Perry

Spirit of Cricket Award of the Decade: MS Dhoni

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