ALLAN BORDER MEDAL, 2016

David Warner bags Allan Border Medal

by Cricbuzz Staff • Published on

David Warner poses with Allan Border after winning the medal. © Cricbuzz

David Warner got the better of Steven Smith, securing 240 votes to win the Allan Border Medal for 2016. Smith was the favourite to win the award for the second year in succession but Warner got 21 votes more than him to bag the coveted medal while the left hander also pipped the Australian Test skipper to win the Test Player of the Year award.

"No, I wouldn't have thought so", said Warner, when asked if he fancied his chance. "As an opening batter it's quite tough. You actually have to keep scoring back to back, and especially in Test match cricket, it's very hard.

"Hopefully one day another bowler can get it. They work their backsides off and especially through this year, it's been very, very tough for them. They always get my vote on these tough wickets," added Warner, who spoke to the media after landing in Melbourne, ahead of Australia's second T20I against India.

The medal is awarded to the cricketer who has received the most number of votes from his team-mates, umpires (domestic matches), match referees (overseas matches) and media representatives. The individual players, as well as the umpires/referees and media, cast their votes on a 3-2-1 count. Test match votes hold the maximum weightage (6), while ODIs and T20Is attract 3 and 2 respectively.

Allan Border Medal and Test Player of the Year - David Warner

Warner, the aggressive left-handed opener, won his maiden Allan Border Medal and also his first Test player of the year award. The left-hander, who got 21 votes more than Smith, was 57 clear of the third-placed Mitchell Starc. He got 30 votes for the Test player category, six more than Smith and 12 more than Starc, who again finished third. Warner scored 1212 Test runs at an average of 55.09 during the voting period between 16 January 2015 to 07 January 2016. The 29-year-old scored four hundreds and seven fifties in 23 innings, including a highest of 253, which came against New Zealand in Perth in November 2015. He also did well in the ODIs, scoring 652 runs at an average of 54.33, including two hundreds and two fifties. His best score in ODIs - 178 - came in the 2015 World Cup against Afghanistan.

One-Day International Player of the Year - Glenn Maxwell

Glenn Maxwell, with 28 votes - three more than Starc - was crowned the ODI Player of the Year. The 27-year-old, who was named the T20I Player of the year during the 2015 awards, scored 644 runs, which included one hundred and four fifties, in 19 matches at an average of 46. His hundred, which was his first in ODIs, came in the 2015 World Cup match against Sri Lanka. Maxwell also scored 88 against Afghanistan in the world event while his unbeaten 44 helped Australia overcome Pakistan in the quarter-final. He also picked up 19 wickets at an average of 29.52 during the voting period.

Belinda Clark Medal - Ellyse Perry

Ellyse Perry was named the best Women's International Player of the Year for the first time in her career. She prevented Meg Lanning, the Australia Women's team skipper, from bagging the medal for the third year in succession. During the voting period, Perry scored 264 runs at an average of 33 while she also picked up 16 wickets at 13.43. She picked up 33 votes, 13 more than Lanning, while Rene Farrell finished third with 15 votes.

Bradman Young Cricketer of the Year - Alex Ross

Alex Ross, the 23-year-old right-handed batsman, who plays for West End Redbacks and Adelaide Strikers, was awarded for his fine showing in domestic cricket as he won the emerging player of the year award. Ross, who made his first-class debut in February 2015, ended the year with 416 runs, with three fifties and a highest of an unbeaten 92. Ross received 31.86% of the votes, Travis Dean got 24.24% while Joel Paris, who recently made his ODI debut, got 21.24 percent of the votes from his peers.

Domestic Player of the Year - Adam Voges

He made his Test debut as a 35-year old in June 2015, and in what has been a superb season for him, Adam Voges has scored in excess of 1000 runs with four centuries, five fifties and a highest of 269 not out. He missed out on most of the domestic matches this season due to international commitments, but that did not deter his peers from helping him win the award with 32.41 percent of the votes. Michael Klinger, who scored 1568 runs across Sheffield Shield, Matador Cup and the Big Bash League, during the voting period (1 January, 2015 31 December, 2015), had the most runs at the end of the season. However, he had to be content with the second spot with 30.56 percent of the votes.

Hall of Fame inductees: Jeff Thomson and Wally Grout

Jeff Thomson, the legendary Australian quick, and Wally Grout, the former Australia wicket-keeper, were the latest inductees in the Hall of Fame. Thomson, who represented Australia from 1972 to 1985, picked up 200 wickets in 51 Test matches. Thomson formed a lethal partnership with Dennis Lillee during the 1970s and was considered by many of his peers as the fastest bowler in the game of cricket.

Grout played for Australia from 1957 to 1966. Like Thomson, Grout also played 51 Tests in which he picked up 187 dismissals, which was a past record for Australia. Less than three years after playing his final Test, Grout suffered a heart attack and passed away at the age of 41.

David Warner scored 1212 Test runs at an average of 55.09 while he also did well in the ODIs ©Reuters

Glenn Maxwell scored 644 ODI runs and picked up 19 wickets ©Reuters

During the voting period, Ellyse Perry scored 264 runs at an average of 33 ©Reuters

It was a successful year for Alex Ross, who made his First-Class debut in Feb 2015 ©Reuters

It was a year to remember for Adam Voges, who made his Test debut at the age of 35 ©Reuters

Jeff Thomson was considered by many of his peers as the fastest bowler in the game of cricket ©Reuters

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