New Zealand batter Mark Chapman, Sri Lanka spinner Prabath Jayasuriya and Pakistan opener Fakhar Zaman have been nominated for ICC Men's Player of the Month award

Cricket Image for New Zealand batter Mark Chapman, Sri Lanka spinner Prabath Jayasuriya and Pakistan (Image Source: Google)

Though Chapman had a modest start to April, he top-scored for the tourists in the opening T20I, and went on to score 256 further runs throughout the T20I series against Pakistan without losing his wicket. But he saved his most emphatic performance until the final match, where his scintillating 104 not out from just 57 balls helped New Zealand get the five-game series tied.

Jayasuriya had won the ICC Men's Player of the Month award back in July 2022 for his outstanding displays with the spinning ball in the Test arena. The left-arm spinner took ten wickets in the first Test against Ireland at Galle, including seven for 52 in the first innings as the hosts won convincingly.

He then took seven wickets across both innings in the second Test, including another five-wicket haul and helping him become the fastest spinner to reach 50 Test wickets in the history of the game during the second innings, a record achieved in just seven Tests.

On the other hand, Zaman had a quiet time in the T20I series against New Zealand, but changed gears in the ODI series. Chasing 289 in the series opener, the left-handed opener stitched a 124-run stand with Imam-ul-Haq, and eventually a five-wicket victory thanks to his controlled innings of 117 from 114 balls.

With an even more imposing target of 337 for victory in the second ODI, Zaman once again dominated the visiting bowlers, establishing big partnerships at the top of the order on his way to a memorable 180 not out, allowing Pakistan to record their second highest ever successful ODI chase at a canter.

For the ICC Women's Player of the Month award, Thailand's Naruemol Chaiwai, UAE's Kavisha Egodage and Zimbabwe's Kelis Ndhlovu are the nominees. Naruemol registered two decisive half-centuries in Bangkok during Thailand's 3-0 series win over Zimbabwe.

Kavisha played in eight T20Is for UAE during the month, through the Victoria Women's T20 Series in Uganda, and the subsequent Women's T20 Quadrangular Series in Namibia. The 20-year-old ended the Victoria Women's T20 Series as the tournament's top scorer, and during the month made five consecutive 30-plus contributions on her way to amassing 236 runs in her time of playing T20Is.

Kelis had played for Zimbabwe in the ICC U19 Women's T20 World Cup 2023 in South Africa. In April, she was handed an ODI debut, and adapted well against a strong Thailand outfit, taking 10 wickets at an average of 5.80 despite series defeat.

Her highlight came in the first showdown in Bangkok, where Kelis picked up five wickets for 22 runs. Following up with 3/17 and 2/19 in the second and third ODIs respectively, Ndhlovu continues to thrive on the international stage.