This
year's award saw five players from four different countries nominated
to win the only prize voted by the public at the annual ICC Awards.
Dhoni
beat teammate and middle-order batsman Virat Kohli, Australia captain
Michael Clarke, England skipper Alastair Cook and South Africa ODI
captain AB de Villiers to the prize as announced by ICC's Chief
Executive David Richardson. He now becomes only the third cricketer to
win this coveted prize after Sachin Tendulkar, who was the first-ever
recipient in 2010, and Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara, who won it in 2011
and 2012.
"This
is one of the awards that has given me tremendous satisfaction, since
it comes from the key stakeholders of the game - the fans. Recognition
from the people who support and encourage us day in and day out, only
inspires me to put in that much more, and go the extra mile for them. I
would like to thank all those people who have voted in my favour," said
Dhoni after winning the award.
Along
with the People's Choice award, Dhoni also earned a spot in the Test
and ODI teams of the year. He was also one of the six nominees for the
ODI cricketer of the year award.
Richardson
revealed the ICC Test and ODI teams of the year along with shortlists
for other awards to be presented at the annual ICC award ceremony next
year. The nominees for Test cricketer of the year include Hashim Amla,
James Anderson, R Ashwin, Michael Clarke, Cheteshwar Pujara and Dale
Steyn. Steyn has also been named in the Test side for the sixth year in a
row.
Saeed
Ajmal, Shikhar Dhawan, MS Dhoni, Misbah-ul-Haq, Ravindra Jadeja and
Kumar Sangakkara will compete for the ODI cricketer of the year prize.
The
ICC Awards is now in its 10th year and takes into consideration
performances during the period between August 7 2012 and August 25 2013.
This period includes high-profile events as the World Twenty20 in Sri
Lanka, the Women's World Cup 2013 held in India, the Champions Trophy
held in England and Wales along with several bilateral Test, ODI and
T20I series.
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