ICC nominates Suryakumar Yadav nominated for 2023 men's T20I cricketer

After having won the title last year in 2022, Indian superstar Surya Kumar Yadav is anticipated to lift the trophy again this year

Nominees for ICC men's T20I cricketer of the year ‘23 / Image - X, ICC

The ICC men's T20I cricketer of the year nominations for the year 2023 were announced on January 3, featuring Indian power hitter Suryakumar Yadav.

“Yadav flourished despite the burden of captaincy, taking the reins of a young side towards the end of the year,” ICC said of the Indian announcing his nomination.

Yadav was nominated for the second year in a row this year alongside Sikandar Raza (Zimbabwe), Alpesh Ramjani (Uganda), and Mark Chapman (New Zealand). He won the title in 2022.

Suryakumar Yadav is in the running to claim Men's T20I Cricketer of the Year for a second straight year, though three men stand in his way

After scoring just seven runs in his opening innings against Sri Lanka to begin the year, Yadav went on to have an outstanding year, scoring 51 (36) and 112* (51) in the next two games.

His 112 from 51 balls comprised nine sixes and seven fours, amounting to nearly a boundary every three deliveries. The first boundary came on the fourth ball of his inning, and he reached three figures in 45 balls.

The effort was India's second-fastest hundred in men's T20Is, after only Rohit Sharma's 35-ball century against the same opponent in 2017. Yadav’s innings also helped India clinch the three-match T20I series 2-1.

Before his masterclass innings of 83 (44) against the West Indies in Providence, he continued to score consistently in the 20s and 40s. Against the West Indies, he finished the series with a knock of 61 (45) in Florida.

Yadav hit half-centuries against Australia (80 off 42 balls) and South Africa (56 off 36 balls), before scoring an even 100 against the Proteas in Johannesburg in their final T20I of the year.