Shubman Gill bags record fifth ICC Player of the Month award, finishes ahead of Abhishek Sharma

Shubman Gill won his record fifth ICC Player of the Month award after his September ODI heroics against West Indies, beating Abhishek Sharma and Sikandar Raza.

The Indian ODI skipper, Shubman Gill, won the ICC Player of the Month award on Tuesday. This is the fifth time he has won the prestigious award. Gill was recognised for his brilliant performances against the West Indies in September. He finished ahead of compatriot Abhishek Sharma and Zimbabwe’s Sikandar Raza.

Shubman Gill celebrates his double century during the 2nd ODI against West Indies. (ANI Pic Service)

The record for the most ICC Player of the Month awards previously belonged to Pakistan’s Babar Azam, who had won it three times. Babar claimed the honour on three occasions between April 2021 and August 2023.

The Indian ODI and Test skipper went past Babar after his Test exploits against England in July 2025. Gill’s latest accolade puts him level with women’s cricketer Hayley Matthews, who has also won it five times. He previously won it in January and September 2023, and then again in February and July 2025. For the uninitiated, the award considers players' performances across all formats.

Gill prevailed against strong competition

India’s blazing T20I opener, Abhishek Sharma, posed a formidable challenge to Gill. The left-handed batter was in imperious form during the series against Afghanistan. In the first match, he scored 82 off 32 balls, then 39 off 19 in the second.

However, his best was reserved for the last match, where he hammered 108 runs off 34 balls. Sharma reached his century off just 30 deliveries, breaking Rohit Sharma’s record and becoming India’s fastest T20I centurion. It was also the fastest T20I century by a batter from a Full Member nation. Sharma amassed 229 runs in the three matches.

Raza presented a different kind of challenge for Gill. Although Zimbabwe lost their ODI series against Australia, Raza accumulated 183 runs. In the final match, he scored an unbeaten 81 and also picked up three wickets. In the T20I series, he scored 90 runs and also picked up two wickets. His impressive all-round show kept him firmly in contention for the award.

The two chases that settled the contest

Gill’s September will be remembered for the remarkable consistency he displayed under pressure. He began the series against West Indies with 110 off 108 balls at Thiruvananthapuram. Then he displayed sublime grace and elegance in a record-breaking chase. He scored an unbeaten 223 in pursuit of a daunting target of 406, ensuring that India made light work of an imposing challenge.

“It feels fantastic to win my fifth ICC Player of the Month award, and I am grateful to the panel for this honour,” Gill said. “It was immensely satisfying to score those runs and even more special to be part of successful run chases in front of our home fans, whose support always gives us an extra boost.”

Notably, India also celebrated the women’s award. Shafali Verma became the women’s Player of the Month for the second time. Verma made significant contributions to India’s Asian Games and Asia Cup triumphs. She was the leading run-scorer in the Asia Cup and then hammered an unbeaten 100 against Bangladesh in the Asian Games semi-final. This was the third time that India completed a sweep of the monthly awards.