Pakistan cricketer nominated for ICC Women’s Player of the Month

Pakistan women’s team captain Fatima Sana has been nominated for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award for April 2025, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Monday.

Fatima is among three nominees for the award, alongside Hayley Matthews of the West Indies and Scotland’s Katherine Bryce. All three players earned their spots through standout performances during the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier held in Lahore last month.

Fatima played a key role in Pakistan’s unbeaten run at the tournament. She took 12 wickets at an impressive economy rate of 3.97. Her best bowling figures came in the match against Scotland, where she picked up 4 wickets for just 23 runs in five overs.

She also contributed with the bat, with her best performance being a 62-run knock against Thailand.

Hayley Matthews, the West Indies captain, showed her class with both bat and ball. She was the top wicket-taker in the tournament, taking 13 wickets in five innings at an average of 15.84. With the bat, she scored 240 runs at a strike rate of 116.50 and an average of 60. Her most memorable outing came against Scotland, where she took four wickets and scored a match-winning century.

In West Indies' final game of the tournament, Matthews smashed 70 runs off just 29 balls. Despite her heroic effort, the West Indies missed out on World Cup qualification, finishing third due to a narrow Net Run Rate difference of just 0.01.

Scotland captain Katherine Bryce also impressed with her all-round performance. She was the leading run-scorer of the Qualifier, making 293 runs in five innings at an average of 73.25. Her highest score was an unbeaten 131 off 137 balls — the top individual score of the tournament.

With the ball, Bryce also made her mark by taking six wickets. Her consistent performances earned her the Player of the Tournament award.