First India won the T20 World Cup, now ICC has given Sanju Samson a thumbs up.

Dubai: Sanju Samson, the hero of India’s T20 World Cup victory, was on Tuesday chosen the International Cricket Council (ICC)’s best male player of the month for March. Samson did not get a place in the final eleven in the initial matches of this competition, but later when he was included in the team, he performed brilliantly.

Sanju had helped India win the T20 World Cup title for the second consecutive time earlier this year by scoring 89 runs on 46 balls in the final against New Zealand. Samson receiving this monthly honor means that a player from another country has received this award in the last five months. The last four players in this category include Simon Harmer (South Africa), Mitchell Starc (Australia), Darryl Mitchell (New Zealand) and Sahibzada Farhan (Pakistan).

Samson termed this performance as an important phase of his career. He said:

Winning the ICC Player of the Month award is an incredible feeling, especially as it has come during one of the most unforgettable periods of my cricket career. Contributing to India’s victory in the Men’s T20 World Cup was truly a dream come true and it took me some time to fully understand the significance of that moment. This is an exciting period for Indian cricket, in which there is immense talent in every field. I am grateful for the opportunities I got. I am grateful to my teammates and the coaching staff for showing confidence in me due to which I was able to perform at my best.

Before scoring 89 runs against New Zealand in the T-20 World Cup, Samson had scored an unbeaten 97 against West Indies and 89 runs against England in the semi-finals. In three T-20 international matches played in March, Samson scored 275 runs at an average of 137.50 and an excellent strike rate of 199.27. Samson has received the ICC Male Player of the Month award for the first time.

New Zealand captain Mellie Kerr won the award for the third time in the women’s category after her stellar performances against Zimbabwe and South Africa, where she took 16 wickets and scored 140 runs in the three-match ODI series against Zimbabwe.