South Africa spinner Simon Harmer is a later bloomer, but he seems to be making the most in every match he is playing for his national side. After bagging 13 wickets vs Pakistan in two Tests, he went on to rock India with 17 wickets in as many matches. And for that reason, he has been nominated for the ICC Men’s Player of the Month award for November.
Simon Harmer picks 17 wickets against India
The other players in contention are — Bangladesh’s Taijul Islam and Pakistan’s Mohammad Nawaz. Coming to Harmer, he was one of the biggest reasons, that the Indian side lost 0-2 at home in a shameful showing at home. Without much difference, he was effective in the Kolkata and the Guwahati Test, where the pitch too assisted him, and the Indian batters just could not handle him.
One of the biggest reasons for his success could also be attributed to the fact that Simon Harmer bowled at speeds lower than Indian spinners. The extra revs and the flight was too much for the opposition batters to handle. In his career now, in 14 matches he has played, he has claimed 69 wickets, with seven 4-wicket hauls and two 5-wicket hauls.
Shafali Verma stuns SA in final
On the other hand, the Women’s nominations include India opener Shafali Verma, who had an instant impact on the ICC Women’s World Cup final, where she not only scored runs, but picked up wickets too, to take India to their maiden victory. Coming in as an injury replacement for Pratika Rawal, she scored 87 from 78 in the final in Mumbai, and then picked up the crucial wickets of Sune Luus and Marizanne Kapp in seven overs.
Meanwhile, the other nominations in the women’s section include, Thailand’s left-arm spinner Thipatcha Putthawong, who took 15 wickets in ICC Women’s Emerging Nations Trophy, and UAE skipper Esha Oza.
