LONDON – Devendra Bishoo and Stafanie Taylor kept the West Indies flag flying high, and have both been recognised for their outstanding form inside the last year, when they scooped honours on Monday at the International Cricket Council Awards.
Leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo won the Emerging Player-of-the-Year award, and all-rounder Taylor won the Women’s Player-of-the-Year.
The 25-year-old Bishoo played in five Test matches in the voting period – August 11 last year, and August 3 this year – and took 21 wickets with an average of 35.42. He also collected 19 scalps at 21.57 apiece in 11 One-Day Internationals, and another five wickets at 9.60 each in two Twenty20 Internationals.
Taylor played ten ODIs during the voting period, scoring 610 runs at an average of 76.25, and claimed 15 wickets with her off-spin. She also gathered 49 runs and scalped five wickets in T20I in the period, helping her to take the award ahead of England duo Charlotte Edwards and Lydia Greenway, as well as last year’s winner Shelley Nitschke of Australia.
Meanwhile, Curtly Ambrose was recognised as one of the giants of the game, when he was inducted into the ICC’s Hall of Fame.
The sport’s World governing body made the formal induction of the West Indies fast bowling legend into the 63-member Hall of Fame, along with Australians Alan Davidson and women’s player Belinda Clark during the ICC Awards.
“It is a privilege and an honour to be inducted in the Hall of Fame,” said the 47-year-old Ambrose. “In the history of cricket, there have been many great cricketers, and to be part of that elite group, I am very happy and am very humbled.”
Ambrose added: “I never thought that this day would come. This only tells me that all the hard work I put in throughout my career did not go unnoticed. I see this also as a just reward for all the joy and happiness that I may have brought to cricket and cricketers alike.”
Ambrose, standing at 6 feet, 6 inches tall, captured 405 Test wickets at 20.99 in 98 Tests.
Two of his most noticeable performances came against England and Australia – he took six for 24 to help hustle England out for 46 in Trinidad in 1994, while he took a series-clinching seven for 25, including nine maiden overs, against Australia at the WACA in the previous season.
Ambrose also featured in 176 ODIs, claiming 225 wickets at an average of 24.12. (CMC)
