The International Cricket Council on Thursday announced the Women's ODI Player of the Year for 2023. Recently, the International Cricket board named the best T20I player of 2023 as West Indies star Hayley Matthews won the honour. Meanwhile, the Women's best ODI Player of 2023 Award has gone to Sri Lankan veteran Chamari Athapaththu.
Athapaththu had a stellar year for the team in 2023. She was in some form last year and helped Sri Lanka register their first-ever series win over New Zealand. The Lankan side defeated the white-ferns for the first time 2-1 at home.
She was the cornerstone with the bat and scored centuries in both of wins while remaining unbeaten and carrying the team home. She scored 108* and 140* in the two ODI matches while helping Sri Lanka in pressure situations while chasing.
"I am feeling so happy and proud. You know I have a big dream. So I achieved that dream finally. So I am happy. Sometimes the level up is about improving and not impressing. So I want to keep doing my best for my country all the time," Athapaththu said in a video shared by ICC.
Athapaththu smashed a total of 415 runs in eight matches while taking a wicket too. She started the year with a 1-0 series win over Bangladesh in a rain-affected series. She then played two masterful knocks in the New Zealand series.
