Zalmi Chairman Javed Afridi announces special award for Fatima Sana

• Haier Pakistan and Peshawar Zalmi will reward Sana with an Encouragement Award.
• "Fatima Sana is a role model for Pakistani women," says Javed Afridi.
• He also congratulates Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Shah Afridi for bagging ICC awards. 

KARACHI: Peshawar Zalmi Chairman Javed Afridi on Monday announced a special award for Pakistani pacer Fatima Sana for winning the International Cricket Council's (ICC) Emerging Women's Cricketer of the Year award for 2021, Geo News reported.

According to sources, Haier Pakistan and Peshawar Zalmi will reward Sana with an "Encouragement Award."

Appreciating the cricketer for winning the ICC accolade, Afridi said: "Fatima Sana is a role model for Pakistani women.” 

He also congratulated Babar Azam for winning ICC Men’s ODI Cricketer of the Year award, Mohammad Rizwan for winning ICC Men’s T20I Cricketer of the Year award, and Shaheen Shah Afridi upon winning Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy for ICC Men’s Cricketer of the Year award and said that the “players have made Pakistan proud”.

"Fatima Sana has done the nation proud by not only bagging the ICC award, but by becoming the first woman cricketer from the country to win an ICC accolade," he said.

The ICC, in a statement, said that the 20-year-old "impressed one and all with her all-round efforts in 2021".

Her figures for the year consist of 24 wickets at an average of 23.95 and 165 runs at 16.50 in 16 international matches. 

The Pakistan Cricket Board congratulated Sana on winning the award, saying: "We are proud of you Fatima!"