Cricket South Africa Awards 2023: Anrich Nortje, Shabnim Ismail bag top honours

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Cricket South Africa Awards 2023

Cricket South Africa (CSA) recently announced its annual awards and honoured outstanding performers for their exceptional contributions over the past year.

The award ceremony took place in Midrand on Friday and saw speedster Anrich Nortje bag South Africa’s Men’s Cricketer of the Year title. Meanwhile, Shabnim Ismail was named South Africa’s Women’s Cricketer of the Year.

It is worth mentioning that both Nortje and Ismail were consistent performers for the South African men’s and women’s national teams in the last season. Nortje displayed remarkable skills and contributed to the men’s side across formats. On the other hand, Ismail has been a dominant force in women’s cricket and claimed eight wickets in six matches at an economy rate of 5.86 in the 2023 T20 World Cup at home. However, the legendary fast bowler bid adieu to the game on May 3 earlier this year.

WINNER – MEN'S PLAYER OF THE YEAR 🏆
Anrich Nortje was an all-format superstar, regardless of the conditions, the occasion, and the opposition#CSAAwards2023 #SummerToCelebrate #BePartOfIt pic.twitter.com/C2PvLZaSpz
— Proteas Men (@ProteasMenCSA) July 7, 2023

WINNER – WOMEN'S PLAYER OF THE YEAR 🏆
Shabnim Ismail’s all-format excellence saw her reap 13 Women's T20 wickets at 23.15 and 13 ODI wickets at 13.30, scalps that managed to pull games over the line for women’s side. #CSAAwards2023 #SummerToCelebrate #BePartOfIt pic.twitter.com/J9GsjZV0PB
— Proteas Women (@ProteasWomenCSA) July 7, 2023

In addition to the top awards, Kagiso Rabada was named the Test Player of the Year, while Temba Bavuma claimed the ODI Player of the Year award. Among women cricketers, Nonkululeko Mlaba was named the Women’s T20I Player of the Year, and Laura Wolvaardt received the Women’s ODI Player of the Year award.

Apart from the individual awards, the ceremony recognized the collective efforts of the players as well. David Miller was awarded the SA Men Players’ Player of the Year, reflecting the respect and admiration he commands from his peers. Sinalo Jafta was named the South Africa Fans’ Player of the Year, highlighting the immense support she has received from cricket enthusiasts across the nation.

The International Men’s Newcomer of the Year award went to young sensation Gerald Coetzee.

CSA Chief Executive Officer Pholetsi Moseki congratulated the annual award winners on their achievements and acknowledged the performances of the players after the ceremony.

“On behalf of Cricket South Africa, I would like to congratulate all the winners on their awards. There were so many strong performances and outstanding candidates for awards over the past season; it really made the task of the judges exceptionally tough,” Pholetsi was quoted saying by ESPNcricinfo.