Sri Lanka's captain Chamari Athapaththu has been named the skipper of the ICC Women's ODI Team of the Year which comprises as many as five Australians.
The opening pair features Chamari Athapaththu and Phoebe Litchfield. Athapaththu scored 415 runs in eight ODIs in 2023 at an average of 69.16. She notched up two centuries and a half-centuries in the entire calendar year.
Athapaththu displayed phenomenal leadership skills during 2023 and helped Sri Lanka register their first-ever bilateral series win over the White Ferns.
On the other hand, Litchfield finished as the second-leading run accumulator in the format with 485 runs in 13 games at an average of 53.88. She smashed two tons and four half-centuries.
The young southpaw bagged four Player of the Match (POTM) awards during 2023. Litchfield's inclusion in the Australian ODI team has to a certain extent filled the void that Rachael Haynes' departure created.
New Zealand's Amelia Kerr has also found a place in the ICC Women's ODI Team of the Year. Kerr finished 2023 as the leading run accumulator in the ODI circuit with 541 runs in nine games. The right-handed batter notched up two tons and three half-centuries at an astounding average of 67.62.
Australia's star allrounder Ellyse Perry and wicketkeeper-batter Beth Mooney provide solidity to the middle order. While Perry aggregated five fifty-plus scores in the ten innings that she batted in the ODIs in 2023, Mooney amassed 439 runs at a mindblowing average of 60.
Ash Gardner and Annabel Sutherland add strength to the lower order. Gardner was the key to Australia's dominance and Sutherland also grabbed plenty of eyeballs with her performances.
South Africa's allrounder Nadine de Klerk, New Zealand's fiery pacer Lea Tahuhu and Bangladesh's left-arm orthodox spinner Nahida Akter complete the XI.
ICC Women's ODI Team of the Year 2023:
Phoebe Litchfield, Chamari Athapaththu (c), Ellyse Perry, Amelia Kerr, Beth Mooney (wk), Nat Sciver-Brunt, Ash Gardner, Annabel Sutherland, Nadine de Klerk, Lea Tahuhu, Nahida Akter
