Island nation

T20I Cricketer: Sri Lanka skipper Chamari Athapaththu, along with two ICC Women’s T20 World Cup finalists - Melie Kerr and Laura Wolvaardt - and Ireland batter Orla Prendergast, has been nominated for the ICC Women’s T20I Cricketer of the Year for 2024.

Despite encountering an unexpected slump in the Women's T20 World Cup, Athapaththu was the second-highest run-getter in a calendar year in women’s T20Is. Her 720 runs included two hundreds and four half-centuries, with 86 fours and 32 sixes to her name. Apart from her exploits with the willow, Athapaththu also picked 21 wickets in the period.

A maiden Women’s T20 World Cup title and the national record for most Women’s T20I wickets in a year marked quite a year for Melie Kerr. Besides, the all-rounder also starred with the willow, hitting five scores of 40 plus while playing a key role in the New Zealand top order.