West Indies all-rounders Justin Greaves and Hayley Matthews have been named the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s and Women’s Player of the Month for July 2026. The awards were announced on 18 August 2026, giving West Indies a rare double celebration. Greaves won his first monthly honour for his Test performances at home, while Matthews claimed the award for a record fifth time after a dominant ODI series in Ireland.
What Is the ICC Player of the Month Award?
The International Cricket Council (ICC) is the global governing body for cricket. It was founded on 15 June 1909 as the Imperial Cricket Conference by England, Australia and South Africa, and was renamed the International Cricket Council in 1989. Its headquarters is in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, since 2005, after moving from London. The ICC has 108 member nations, including 12 Full Members who can play Test cricket, and 96 Associate Members.
The ICC Player of the Month award was introduced in January 2021 to recognise the best performances in international cricket each month. It covers all formats, including Tests, One Day Internationals (ODIs) and Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is), and is given separately to one male and one female cricketer. Three nominees are shortlisted for each category based on performances from the first to the last day of the month.
Winners are chosen through a combined voting system. An ICC Voting Academy, which includes former international players, broadcasters, journalists and members of the ICC Hall of Fame, holds 90 percent of the vote. Fans registered on icc-cricket.com/awards hold the remaining 10 percent. Results are usually announced on the second Monday of the following month on ICC digital channels.
Justin Greaves: Maiden Award After Test Heroics at Home
Justin Pierre Greaves is a Barbadian all-rounder who plays for the West Indies. He was born on 26 February 1994 in Barbados and is a right-handed batter and right-arm medium-fast bowler. He made his ODI debut on 8 January 2022 against Ireland and his Test debut on 17 January 2024 against Australia. He was part of the West Indies Under-19 squad for the 2012 Under-19 World Cup.
Greaves has been known as a useful all-rounder in domestic cricket, representing Barbados, Combined Campuses and Colleges, Windward Islands and Leeward Islands, and playing in the Caribbean Premier League for Barbados Royals and Antigua and Barbuda Falcons. His first Test century came in November 2024, an unbeaten 115 against Bangladesh in Antigua.
Match-Winning Performances in July 2026
Greaves beat England captain Harry Brook and Bangladesh opener Tanzid Hasan to win the men’s award. His July was built on two home Test series that are part of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC), the league that decides the top Test team over a two-year cycle.
In the second Test against Sri Lanka at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, North Sound, Sri Lanka posted a huge 549 for 9 declared. Greaves responded with a superb 180, the highest score of the match, to help West Indies draw the game and take the two-match series 1-0. Later in July, in the first Test against Pakistan at Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad, he turned the match with the ball. He took 5 for 27 in the first innings and 2 for 12 in the second, guiding West Indies to a 90-run victory.
Across July, Greaves played two Tests, scoring 215 runs at an average of 71.66, and taking eight wickets at an average of just 10.25. He also played two ODIs, scoring 32 runs at a strike rate of 114.28. His calm batting and disciplined seam bowling gave balance to the West Indies side and lifted him to ninth place in the ICC Test All-Rounder Rankings during the month.
Hayley Matthews: Record Fifth Title With Bat and Ball
Hayley Kristen Matthews is the captain of the West Indies Women team and one of the leading all-rounders in world cricket. She was born on 19 March 1998 in Barbados and is a right-handed batter and right-arm off-break bowler. She made her international debut at just 16 years old, with a T20I debut in September 2014 against New Zealand and an ODI debut on 11 November 2014 against Australia. She took over as West Indies captain from Stafanie Taylor in June 2022. One of her most famous innings was 66 off 45 balls in the 2016 Women’s T20 World Cup final against Australia, which gave West Indies their first world title.
Before July 2026, Matthews had already won the ICC Women’s Player of the Month award four times, in November 2021, October 2023, April 2024 and June 2025. The June 2025 award came after a strong T20I series against South Africa. With her fifth win in July 2026, she now holds the outright record for the most Women’s Player of the Month awards, moving ahead of Australia’s Ashleigh Gardner.
Dominance in Ireland: Two Centuries and Seven Wickets
Matthews won ahead of England captain Nat Sciver-Brunt and Sri Lanka batter Harshitha Samarawickrama. She was named Player of the Series in the three-match ODI series in Ireland, which was part of the ICC Women’s Championship, the tournament that decides qualification for the Women’s Cricket World Cup.
Her numbers in the series were outstanding. She scored 265 runs at an average of 132.50 and a strike rate of 117.25, and took seven wickets at an average of 17.57 and an economy rate of 4.10. She took at least two wickets in every match.
The performance unfolded across three ODIs at Bready Cricket Club, Magheramason:
| Match | Batting Score | Bowling Figures | Result and Honour |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st ODI, 10 July 2026 | 159 not out | 3 for 52 | West Indies won by 9 wickets |
| 2nd ODI, 12 July 2026 | 100 off 94 balls | 2 for 34 | West Indies won by 6 wickets, shared a big partnership with Stafanie Taylor who also scored 100 |
| 3rd ODI | Contributed with bat and 2 for 37 | West Indies completed a 3-0 clean sweep |
Her unbeaten 159 in the first ODI was a career-best and, with Realeanna Grimmond’s 91, chased down Ireland’s 270 with 68 balls to spare. In the second ODI, she added another century while chasing 242. This consistency with both bat and ball made her the clear choice for the award.
A Historic Double for West Indies
The July 2026 awards created history for West Indies cricket. It was the first time ever that players from the West Indies swept both the men’s and women’s Player of the Month awards in the same month. It was only the fifth double for any country since the awards began in January 2021.
Earlier doubles were achieved by:
- India in June 2024, with Jasprit Bumrah and Smriti Mandhana
- Sri Lanka in August 2024, with Dunith Wellalage and Harshitha Samarawickrama
- India again in September 2025, with Abhishek Sharma and Smriti Mandhana
- South Africa in October 2025, with Senuran Muthusamy and Laura Wolvaardt
Both Greaves and Matthews are from Barbados, making it a double celebration for the island. For Matthews, the award added to a year in which she had missed part of the 2025 season due to a shoulder injury sustained during The Hundred in England, before returning strongly in 2026.
Nominees, Rivals and How Voting Worked
The ICC shortlisted six nominees for July 2026, three for each category, and opened voting to fans and the Voting Academy in the second week of August.
Men’s Nominees for July 2026
| Player | Country | Why Nominated |
|---|---|---|
| Justin Greaves | West Indies | 215 runs at 71.66 and 8 wickets at 10.25 in two Tests against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, including 180 and 5 for 27 |
| Harry Brook | England | 229 runs in five T20Is at average 114.50 and strike rate 214.01, plus 31 runs in three ODIs, as England beat India in both white-ball series and was named Player of the Series in T20Is |
| Tanzid Hasan | Bangladesh | Leading run scorer on tour of Zimbabwe, with 159 runs at 53.00 in three ODIs and 140 runs at 70.00 and strike rate 127.27 in three T20Is |
Women’s Nominees for July 2026
| Player | Country | Why Nominated |
|---|---|---|
| Hayley Matthews | West Indies | 265 runs at 132.50 and 7 wickets at 17.57 in 3 ODIs against Ireland, with centuries of 159 not out and 100 |
| Harshitha Samarawickrama | Sri Lanka | 173 runs at average 173.00 and strike rate 77.23 in ODI series against Pakistan, including 100 off 119 balls in the second ODI and 71 not out in the decider, Player of the Series in Sri Lanka’s 2-1 win |
| Nat Sciver-Brunt | England | 133 runs at strike rate 133 in Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, including 75 off 47 balls in the semi-final against South Africa when England were 23 for 3, and 58 not out off 53 balls in the final against Australia where England finished runners-up |
England’s run to the Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 final, played in England in June and July 2026, gave Sciver-Brunt a strong case. Sri Lanka’s series win over Pakistan showed Harshitha’s growing importance as a left-hander at the top. But the all-round dominance of Greaves and Matthews, both contributing with bat and ball, tipped the vote in favour of the West Indies pair.
Key Takeaways
- Justin Greaves won the ICC Men’s Player of the Month for July 2026, his first such award, and Hayley Matthews won the ICC Women’s Player of the Month for July 2026 for a record fifth time.
- Awards were announced on 18 August 2026 by the International Cricket Council, headquartered in Dubai, founded in 1909 as the Imperial Cricket Conference.
- Greaves scored 215 runs at 71.66 and took 8 wickets at 10.25 in two Tests, including 180 against Sri Lanka at North Sound and 5 for 27 and 2 for 12 against Pakistan at Trinidad.
- Matthews scored 265 runs at 132.50 and took 7 wickets at 17.57 in three ODIs against Ireland in the ICC Women’s Championship, including centuries of 159 not out and 100.
- This was the first ever double for West Indies and only the fifth double overall since the award began in January 2021.
- Greaves beat Harry Brook of England and Tanzid Hasan of Bangladesh, while Matthews beat Nat Sciver-Brunt of England and Harshitha Samarawickrama of Sri Lanka.
- Voting combines 90 percent from the ICC Voting Academy and 10 percent from fans registered at icc-cricket.com/awards.
