Australia and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) star cricketer Travis Head received the prestigious ‘Allan Border Medal’ for Australia’s top male cricketer, while promising all-rounder Annabel Sutherland was honored with the ‘Belinda Clark Medal’ at the Australian Cricket Awards 2024 on Monday. Head, who amassed 1,427 runs across all three formats during the voting period, garnered 208 votes to clinch the award, beating out Josh Hazlewood (158 votes) and Pat Cummins (147 votes).
“It’s quite unbelievable. It’s been a great year, and I’m glad I could contribute in various roles and formats. This is a real achievement, and I’m enjoying every moment of it,” Head said in a recorded interview from Galle.
In addition to the ‘Allan Border Medal’, the 31-year-old also earned the men’s ODI Player-of-the-Year award and finished as the runner-up for both the T20 and Test Player-of-the-Year honors. Head’s ODI award came despite playing in only five of the 11 ODIs Australia contested during the eligibility period. His remarkable performance, which featured a standout 154 not out against England at Trent Bridge, enabled him to outshine Alex Carey, Steve Smith, and Xavier Bartlett for the top prize.
Travis Head was retained for Rs 14 crore by IPL 2024 runners-up SRH and will be expected to open the innings with new Indian sensation Abhishek Sharma in the IPL 2025 season from next month.
Andrew McDonald presented Travis Head with the Allan Border Medal over in Sri Lanka…
A standard reaction from Head too
#AusCricketAwards pic.twitter.com/vnDucHjsQy
— 7Cricket (@7Cricket) February 3, 2025
For Sutherland, this was her first Australian Cricket Award, coming just days after she recorded her maiden Test century at the MCG—making her the first woman to reach a century on that ground. The 23-year-old all-rounder made an impressive start to the 12-month voting period with a 210-run performance against South Africa at the WACA, and later added another feather to her cap with a brilliant 163 in the Ashes, marking her third Test century.
Sutherland received 168 votes to win the Belinda Clark Medal, surpassing Ashleigh Gardner (143 votes) and Beth Mooney (115 votes). “It feels surreal. Winning an award that bears Belinda Clark’s name is incredibly special,” Sutherland remarked.
Australia pacer Josh Hazlewood was named Men’s Test Player-of-the-Year, marking his first recognition at the Australian Cricket Awards. He took 30 wickets at an average of 13.16 in Tests against the West Indies, New Zealand, and India.
Rising star Sam Konstas, who made an impressive debut at 19 during the Boxing Day Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India, was named Young Cricketer of the Year. Konstas scored 113 runs across his last two Tests, including a notable 60 off 65 balls on debut. He quickly became a fan favorite after dismissing India’s Jasprit Bumrah—a player who had troubled Australian batsmen throughout the five-Test series, which Australia won 3-1.
Although many stars were absent from the ceremony due to the ongoing Test series in Sri Lanka, all-rounder Mitchell Marsh provided comic relief with a humorous story about Bumrah that had the audience laughing at the Crown Casino.
“My little nephew, Ted, who is four years old, recently joined me for a game of backyard cricket, and he mimicked Bumrah’s action perfectly… and the fun just didn’t stop,” Marsh joked.
“The nightmare continued”
Mitch Marsh on fire again at the #AusCricketAwards
pic.twitter.com/KPBNSS1Urs
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) February 3, 2025
Other awards included Ashleigh Gardner being named Women’s ODI Player of the Year after emerging as Australia’s top run-scorer in the format with 385 runs, while Beth Mooney was named Women’s T20 Player of the Year for the third time after scoring 618 runs during the voting period.
Leg-spinner Adam Zampa was honored as the Men’s T20I Player of the Year after taking 35 wickets in 21 T20Is, narrowly beating Head by three votes. Cameron Green received the Community Impact Award for his efforts in raising awareness about kidney disease.
The ceremony also celebrated the induction of Michael Clarke, Michael Bevan, and Christina Matthews into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame. Additional awards went to Beau Webster and Georgia Voll, who were named Men’s and Women’s Domestic Player of the Year, respectively, while Chloe Ainsworth was recognized as Young Cricketer of the Year. Glenn Maxwell and Cooper Connolly shared the title of BBL Player of the Tournament, and Ellyse Perry and Jess Jonassen jointly received the WBBL Player of the Tournament award.
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