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5 weird Man of the Match/Series awards in cricket

 

Over the years, the world of cricket has changed a lot. There was a time when an ODI match consisted of 60 overs with 8 balls bowled per over. With the advent of shorter formats, the game has become faster than usual.

However, during those days there have been a lot of weird things like weird outfits, some weird bats, some weird awards and much more. In 1990, when Sachin Tendulkar was at the edge of 17, he was awarded a champagne bottle for his maiden hundred which came against England at Old Trafford in Manchester.

Adding to that, Allan Donald who was named as the Man of the Tournament in 1996 had got a jewellery case as an award. Besides, the modern-day players have also got some weird awards for their spectacular performances in the game. Let's see the five cricketers who received those weird awards:

5. Jasprit Bumrah received a Mini Truck as a Man of the Series award

Jasprit Bumrah is one of the best bowlers that India has ever produced. He can go through any tough batting line-up at both powerplays and slog overs of the game. Coming to the point, Ms Dhoni-led men toured Sri Lanka for a 5-match Bilateral Series in 2017 and went on to whitewash the hosts as they won all the five games they played.

Jasprit Bumrah was the highest wicket-taker who bagged 15 scalps at an average of around 12. His stellar performance in the series earned him the Man of the Series award as he received a Mini Truck which turned out as the funniest moment in the series. 

4. Eoin Morgan was awarded a rice cooker for his under pressure innings

The 2019 World Cup Winner Eoin Morgan is regarded as one of the best players in white-ball cricket. In 2013, the Irish born received a rice cooker during the Dhaka Premier League. He was at his full flow in the game and went on to finish the match for his team and as a result, he was named as the Man of the match.

After receiving the reward, Morgan thought that this cooker was given for his under pressure innings but the reason for that award was rather than his imagination. The truth is that the rice cooker is one of the sponsors of the competition.

3. Anton Devcich received Sunshine snacks in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL)

The Caribbean Premier League is one of the most loved tournaments around the globe. The West Indies cricketers have always been match-winners for their side at any moment of the game. Likewise, the New Zealand cricketer Anton Devcich showed off his skills with the willow during the eliminator against Jamaica Tallawahs.

He scored 50 runs from 23 balls to help his side to run over the victory line. As a result, he was named as the Player of the Match and got Sunshine snacks as an award. However, players can't eat the snacks due to maintaining their fitness levels.

2. Jhye Richardson received shoelaces and bat grips as an award

Jhye Richardson is the latest entrant to the list who came to the spotlight after his fabulous performances in the Big Bash League. The moment took place during the India tour of Australia 2018-19 where he received shoelaces and bat grips as an award after his solid show with the ball.

In the 1st ODI against the visitors, the youngster scalped 4 wickets which helped his team to win the match. However, India won the remaining games and conquered the three-match series as 2-1. He was scalped by Punjab Kings in the IPL Auction 2021 for a whopping amount of INR 14 Crore. 

1. A Blender for Luke Wright in the Dhaka Premier League

The English cricketer is known for his hard-hitting skills while batting down the order. Once, he played the finisher role for England and helped with the ball as well. Later, he concentrated on the T20 format where he found himself getting quite a lot of contracts from other teams all around the world.

In the Dhaka Premier League, he was awarded a blender for his match-winning performance on the field. After the game, he posted the picture with the blender on Twitter “Pleased we won my first match for Abhanai today. Have to say I have never been given a blender for MoM before,” written by Luke Wright.