Pakistan women’s team head Fatima Sana has been nominated for the ICC Women’s Player of the Month prize for April 2025, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Monday.
Fatima is among three candidates for the award, along Hayley Matthews of the West Indies and Scotland’s Katherine Bryce. All three players received their spots through standout performances during the ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier held in Lahore previous month.
Fatima played an important role in Pakistan’s undefeated run at the tournament. She took 12 wickets at an imposing economy rate of 3.97. Her best bowling statistics came in the match against Scotland, where she chosen 4 wickets for just 23 runs in five overs.
She also donated with the bat, with her best performance actuality a 62-run knock against Thailand.
Hayley Matthews, the West Indies captain, exposed her class with both bat and ball. She was the top wicket-taker in the tournament, winning 13 wickets in five innings at an average of 15.84. With the bat, she recorded 240 runs at a strike rate of 116.50 and an average of 60. Her most unforgettable excursion 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. Although her stout effort, the West Indies misused out on World Cup qualification, concluding third due to a thin Net Run Rate difference of just 0.01.
Scotland captain Katherine Bryce also awestruck with her all-round performance. She was the leading run-scorer of the Qualifier, making 293 runs in five runs at an average of 73.25. Her uppermost score was a winning 131 off 137 balls the top separate score of the tournament.
With the ball, Bryce also made her mark by attractive six wickets. Her consistent performances earned her the Player of the Tournament award.
