New Zealand’s Suzie Bates has become the first cricketer to clinch both the ICC Women's ODI and T20I Player of the Year awards.
Over the past 12 months Bates scored 472 runs in eight ODIs at an average of just over 94. She also took eight wickets at an economy-rate of 3.75.
In the shortest format of the game, Bates was the leading run-scorer with 429 runs at an average of 42.90 and a strike-rate of over 115 runs per 100 balls.
A delighted Bates was both shocked and surprised upon hearing of her achievement.
"It was a bit of a surprise to find out that I had won both these awards," Bates said from Perth, where she's starring for the Scorchers in the Australian Big Bash league.
"It is always nice to be recognised for performances and after a busy year of cricket, I am pleased to have managed some consistency over both formats.
"The awards are always nice but the most important thing for me is to make sure I am performing consistently and helping put the team in a position to win more games.
"For the past one-and-a-half years, our team has been performing very well and lots of different players have stood up and performed under pressure. It is heartening to see that the team is doing very well going into the ICC Women’s World Cup 2017 which will be held in England and Wales."
Newshub.