NEWS
SCHEDULES
COLUMNS
PREVIOUS TOURS
OTHER SPORTS
STATISTICS
INTERVIEWS
SLIDE SHOW
ARCHIVES

Rediff Shopping

Shop & gift from thousands of products!   Books     Music       Apparel   Jewellery   Flowers   More..      Safe Shopping

McGrath named player of the year

Glenn McGrath was named international cricketer of the year, at the annual Federation of International Cricketers Association ceremony in London.

Fellow Australian paceman Brett Lee took the trophy for best newcomer of the year.

Last year, the awards were won by Brian Lara and Jacques Kallis respectively.

FICA is headed by former South African batting great Barry Richards. The contenders were judged by a panel drawn from each of the nine Test playing nations. Bangladesh, the latest entry into the Test club, did not have a representative on the panel.

McGrath pipped fellow Australian Ricky Ponting, South Africans Shaun Pollock and Lance Klusener, Indian batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar, and New Zealand's Chris Cairns to the award.

Lee won the best newcomer prize ahead of the likes of Pakistan pace ace Shoaib Akthar and all rounder Abdur Razzaq.

International player of the year in 1999 was Brian Lara and the international young player was Jacques Kallis.

Other awards went to record wicket-taker Courtney Walsh, who won the Wisden International Moment in History 2000 award, and Malcolm Marshall who was posthumously awarded the Regus International Special Merit Award.

Five cricketers were also inducted into the Hall of Fame on Monday night. They were: England legend Graham Gooch, former Yorkshire and England all-rounder Wilfred Rhodes, explosive West Indian bowler Andy Roberts, ex-Australian skipper Ian Chappell and former Kent batsman Frank Woolley.