With just two months left until the 2025 year ends, cricketing fans worldwide may be interested in the leading candidates for the ICC Cricket Awards 2025.
At the top of the awards list is the Sir Garfield Sobers award, given to the ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year. It is one of the most prestigious honours in cricket, awarded to the player with the most stellar performances across formats throughout the year.
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India's captain Shubman Gill and England's batter Joe Root have emerged as the front-runners for the prestigious award.
Are Shubman Gill and Joe Root leading candidates for Sir Garfield Sobers Award 2025?
Gill and Root have been in some prolific form throughout the year. Both batters have been exceptional and have piled up runs across formats with a lot of consistency for their respective teams.
Gill's highlight series came against England earlier this year. The Indian captain finished the series as the leading run-scorer with 754 runs in 10 innings.
He also registered the highest individual score by an Indian captain (269) during the series while also breaking multiple batting records.
On the other hand, Root has also scored the most runs against India so far, piling up 534 runs in the same series. The English batter still has the Ashes series left to further boost his credentials.
Let's take a detailed look at the records of both batters across formats in the year 2025
Joe Root's 2025 statistics:
| Format | Matches | Innings | Runs | Average | 50s | 100s | HS |
| Tests | 6 | 10 | 571 | 63.44 | 1 | 3 | 150 |
| ODIs | 12 | 12 | 779 | 70.81 | 4 | 3 | 166* |
| T20Is | DNF | DNF | DNF | DNF | DNF | DNF | DNF |
Shubman Gill's 2025 statistics:
| Format | Matches | Innings | Runs | Average | 50s | 100s | HS |
| Tests | 8 | 15 | 979 | 69.92 | 1 | 5 | 269 |
| ODIs | 8 | 8 | 447 | 63.85 | 2 | 2 | 112 |
| T20Is | 7 | 7 | 127 | 21.16 | 0 | 0 | 47 |
While Root still has the Ashes to further add to his credentials, Gill has games across formats. He will lead India in the 3-match ODI series against Australia starting next week, which will be followed by 5 T20Is against the same opponent.
India's upcoming fixtures in 2025:
- 3 ODIs against Australia
- 5 T20Is against Australia
- 2 Tests against South Africa
- 3 ODIs against South Africa
- 5 T20Is against South Africa
What is the ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year selection process?
The ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year is selected by a combination of votes from an expert panel and public votes through ICC digital platforms.
A specialist panel, including the cricket writers and broadcasters, shortlists the nominees according to their on-field performances and overall achievements in International cricket throughout the year.
Fans' and experts' votes are then combined to decide the final result of the winner.
Who was the ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year in 2024?
India's ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah was awarded the ICC Men's Cricketer of the Year award in 2024 for his unmatched brilliance across formats.
Bumrah picked 71 wickets in Test matches at an average of 14, and played a major role in taking India to their second T20 World Cup title, for which he was awarded the 'Player of the Tournament' award.
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