Dubai, Jan 25 (PTI): Indian left-arm seamer Arshdeep Singh was on Saturday crowned the ICC Men's T20I Cricketer of the Year 2024 for his influential role in the team's World Cup title triumph, which cemented his reputation as one of the leading short format bowlers.

The 25-year-old took 36 wickets in 18 matches last year.

He was also named in the ICC T20I Team of the Year 2024 earlier in the day alongside Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya.

In the T20 World Cup in the Americas, Arshdeep showcased his mastery in both powerplay and death bowling and ended the tournament as the joint highest wicket-taker alongside Afghanistan's Fazalhaq Farooqi with 17 scalps at an average of 12.64 across eight matches.

His standout performance was one of the major factors behind India's campaign culminating in a dramatic seven-run victory over South Africa in the final in Barbados.

In the final, he claimed 2/20, dismissing South African captain Aiden Markram early and breaking a threatening partnership by removing Quinton de Kock during the middle overs.

Tasked with bowling the penultimate over, Arshdeep conceded just four runs, setting the stage for Hardik Pandya to seal the win.

A Stellar Year

Arshdeep's T20I record in 2024 further underscores his dominance -- 36 wickets in 18 matches at an average of 15.31 and an economy rate of 7.49.

His strike rate of 10.80 was a testament to his wicket-taking prowess, especially given his challenging role in the powerplay and at the death.

Only four players in the world took more T20I wickets than Arshdeep in a calendar year – Saudi Arabia's Usman Najeeb (38), Sri Lanka's Wanindu Hasaranga (38), UAE's Junaid Siddique (40) and Hong Kong's Ehsan Khan (46) – with all four playing more matches. Of those bowlers, only Hasaranga featured for a full-member nation.

His best figures of the year, 4/9, came against the USA during the World Cup group stage, a performance emblematic of his brilliance on varied surfaces.

With 97 scalps, Arshdeep is now the highest wicket-taker in the format for India.

Since his international debut in 2022, Arshdeep has steadily risen as one of India's most reliable pacers.

Arshdeep had a number of impressive displays in the year, not least when he ripped through the USA in New York during the T20 World Cup group stage, bagging remarkable returns of 4/9 in his four overs.

But Arshdeep's most significant performance of the year came on the biggest stage of all, as he played a huge part in helping India successfully defend their total of 176 in the final in Barbados.

Excellent with the new ball up top, Arshdeep struck in the powerplay to have the dangerous South African skipper Markram caught behind in just the third over.

And when India were in need of a wicket in the middle overs it was Arshdeep that provided the breakthrough, dismissing a set Quinton de Kock when the Proteas looked to be in control of the chase.

India's collective effort at the death was astonishing as South Africa pulled up seven runs short of their target, and Arshdeep played a huge role in that, returning to the attack to bowl the penultimate over with South Africa requiring 20 from 12 deliveries.

Arshdeep delivered a near-perfect death over under the greatest pressure, conceding just four runs to leave Pandya with 16 runs to defend in the final over, a job that he spectacularly did.

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



New Delhi, Jan 27 (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Donald Trump on Monday vowed to work towards a "trusted" partnership between India and US and advance global peace and security in their first phone conversation since the American leader's inauguration last week.

Modi and Trump exchanged views on global issues, including the situation in West Asia and Ukraine, and deliberated on measures to boost bilateral cooperation in areas such as technology, trade, investment, energy and defence, an Indian readout said.

The two leaders agreed to meet soon, it said.

"Delighted to speak with my dear friend President @realDonaldTrump @POTUS.

Congratulated him on his historic second term," Modi said on 'X'.

"We are committed to a mutually beneficial and trusted partnership. We will work together for the welfare of our people and towards global peace, prosperity, and security," he said.

In a statement, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said the two leaders "reaffirmed" their commitment for a "mutually beneficial and trusted partnership".

"They discussed various facets of the wide-ranging bilateral Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership and measures to advance it, including in the areas of technology, trade, investment, energy and defence," it said.

"The two leaders exchanged views on global issues, including the situation in West Asia and Ukraine, and reiterated their commitment to work together for promoting global peace, prosperity and security," the PMO said.

"The leaders agreed to remain in touch and meet soon at an early mutually convenient date," it added.

It is not immediately known whether the issues of immigration and tariff figured in the talks.

Like in many countries, there have been some concerns in India as well over the Trump administration's approach on immigration and tariff.

President Trump has already talked about slapping "100 per cent tariffs" on the BRICS grouping, a bloc that includes India too.

It is learnt that the phone call was initiated from the Indian side.

External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said last week that India is looking for "bolder, bigger and a more ambitious" relationship with the US and indicated its readiness to work with the Trump administration to address issues like illegal immigration and trade.

The phone conversation between Modi and Trump came six days after External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held separate meetings with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz in Washington.

Jaishankar also attended the Quad foreign ministers' meeting in the American capital. The meeting was the Trump administration's first foreign policy engagement.

At a media briefing in Washington on January 22, Jaishankar said his meetings signalled that the Trump administration "prioritising" the bilateral relationship with India.

The external affairs minister also said that there was agreement between the two sides about the need to be bolder, bigger, and more ambitious about the bilateral relationship.

Asked about the Trump administration's policy on tariff and immigration, Jaiswal said on Friday that India is looking at addressing issues in a constructive manner.

"Our approach has always been to address issues in a constructive manner which is in keeping with the interests of both countries," he had said at his weekly media briefing last week.

"We remain in close communication with the US administration and would like to continue to work towards strengthening our economic partnership further," he said.

India is also keen to continue cooperation under the Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) that was launched during the tenure of the Biden administration.