By Qaiser Mohammad Ali, IANS
Mumbai : Ace Sri Lankan off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan Thursday won the 2006-07 CEAT International Cricketer award while India’s leg-spinner Anil Kumble and Australian captain Ricky Ponting bagged the Lifetime Achievement awards at a glittering ceremony here Thursday.
India’s Twenty20 World Championship winning team was also felicitated with a purse of Rs.1.5 million at the function held at the Police Gymkhana.
Muralitharan, who also won CEAT International Bowler honour, received $7,500 and $5,000 for the two awards.
Ricky Ponting-led Australia team won the International Cricket Team award and were richer by $10,000.
Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene grabbed the International Batsman award and got $5,000.
This year, CEAT Cricket Rating (CCR) awards also celebrated the diamond jubilee of India-Australian cricket and gave the specially created CCR Lifetime Achievement Award to Kumble and Ponting, who pocketed $5,000 each.
The Lifetime Achievement award recipients have been selected on the basis of the Retro-CEAT Ratings and have taken into consideration the performances of Indian and Australian players in bilateral Test matches since 1947.
Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar, who is associated with the awards, said the CEAT rating was the first in the world that recognised and rewarded international players for their outstanding performances every year.
“They are very comprehensive and easy to understand. The ratings are pretty much accurate as you can see some of the modern greats like Brain Lara, Muralitharan, Ponting etc. winning the CEAT International Cricketer of the Year in the past,” said the former opening batsman who was present at the function.
The CEAT Cricket Year commences on May 1 and ends April 30. The cricketer and team that accumulate the highest number of points in their categories at the end of this period are the winners.
Eminent cricketers from India and Australia, besides the glitterati of Mumbai, were present at the awards function.