Hashim Amla nominated for four CSA awards

Johannesburg: Prolific batsman Hashim Amla has been nominated in four categories of the Cricket South Africa (CSA) professional awards, including the prestigious Cricketer of the Year, to be announced here on July 3.

Amla has also been nominated for the Test Cricketer of the Year award, the One-Day International (ODI) Cricketer of the Year and the `KFC So Good` award which is for a single outstanding achievement. The other nominees for the Cricketer of the Year award are ODI skipper AB de Villiers, batsman Faf du Plessis and pacers Vernon Philander and Dale Steyn. The awards cover the period from May 1, 2012 to April 30, 2013. Amla has scored 1,321 runs in Tests in the period under review at an average of 82.56, with five centuries and four fifties. He also made 552 runs in ODIs at an average of 61.33. Amla`s feats included the South African Test record score of 311 not out against England at The Oval last year. The memorable innings earned him nomination for the `KFC So Good` award. AB de Villiers was outstanding in both Tests and ODIs, while Faf du Plessis made a sensational entry into Test cricket with an splendid debut century which saved the second Test against Australia in Adelaide, paving the way for series win in Perth. Steyn and Philander have spearheaded South Africa`s fast bowling attack during this period. Steyn took 60 Test wickets at an average of 20.26 while Philander claimed 38 wickets at 21.13. Steyn`s devastating spell of six for eight against Pakistan in Johannesburg and Philander`s five for seven against New Zealand in Cape Town were nominated for the KFC So Good award. "This has been the most successful year in the history of South African Test match cricket," said CSA Acting CEO Naasei Appiah. "The Proteas Test squad has become synonymous with sustained excellence and there have also been inspiring performances from many individual players, not to mention the leadership provided by our captain, Graeme Smith," he said. Colin Bryden, convener of the judging panel, commented: "It was an outstanding year for South African cricket and there were many excellent individual performances, particularly in Test matches. There were also some impressive performances in franchise cricket." The other members of the judging panel include broadcaster Aslam Khota, batting legend Graeme Pollock and recently retired fast bowler Victor Mpitsang. Cricket fans will also have voting powers for two of the Awards on the evening ? the Fans Cricketer of the season and the Delivery of the season. List of nominees: South African Cricketer of the Year: Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Faf du Plessis, Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn. Test Cricketer of the Year: Hashim Amla, Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn. One-Day International Cricketer of the Year: Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Ryan McLaren. Twenty20 International Cricketer of the Year: Henry Davids, Robin Peterson, Dale Steyn. KFC So Good Award: Hashim Amla, Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn. Women's Cricketer of the Year: Shabnim Ismail, Marizanne Kapp, Dan? van Niekerk. PTI