ICC announces Men’s Player of the Month nominees for January 2026
DUBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Saturday announced the nominees for the Men’s Player of the Month for January 2026, featuring New Zealand’s Daryl Mitchell, England’s Joe Root and Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav.
Daryl Mitchell enjoyed a stellar start to the year, leading New Zealand to a 2-1 away series victory against India in the ODIs.
Mitchell scored back-to-back centuries in the second and third matches to help New Zealand overturn a 0-1 deficit.
His tally of 352 runs at an average of 176 earned him the Player of the Series award and propelled him to the No. 1 spot in the ICC ODI batting rankings. He also contributed 125 runs at a strike rate of 186.56 in the five-match T20I series against India. Joe Root was instrumental in England’s comeback series win over Sri Lanka in the three-match ODI series. Root scored 61 in the opening match, followed by 75 in the second, and an unbeaten 111 in the series decider as England recovered from 0-1 down to clinch the series 2-1. He finished with 242 runs and two wickets, earning the Player of the Series title.
Root also showcased his class in a challenging Ashes 2025/26 campaign against Australia, where his 160 in the first innings of the Sydney Test reminded fans of his batting prowess, despite England losing the series 4-1.
Suryakumar Yadav returned to form just ahead of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, delivering a sensational performance against New Zealand in the five-match T20I series.
After a lean patch of 25 matches without a fifty, Yadav hit three half-centuries to lead India to a 4-1 series win. He amassed 242 runs at a strike rate of 196.74 and was named Player of the Series.
His standout performance came in the second match, where his unbeaten 82 guided India to chase down New Zealand’s 208 in just 15.2 overs—India’s second-highest successful chase in T20I history. Monitoring Desk
