Galle International Stadium: Sri Lanka batter Sonal Dinusha, England pacer Ollie Robinson and Bangladesh fast bowler Hasan Mahmud were on Thursday nominated for the ICC Men's Player of the Month award for August 2026.
All three nominees produced match-defining performances as per various situations encountered in the longest format during the month. Left-handed batter Dinusha was in imperious form during Sri Lanka's two-match series against India, which they lost 1-0 at home. The youngster set the tone in the opening Test at Galle International Stadium with a fine century, before following it up with a fighting 84 in the second innings.
He raised the bar further in the second Test at the SSC Ground in Colombo, striking 103 in the first essay and remaining unbeaten on 133 in the second to help Sri Lanka secure a hard-fought and epic draw. Dinusha finished the series as the leading run-getter on either side, accumulating 420 runs at a staggering average of 140 across the two matches.
On the other hand, England seamer Robinson proved to be the wrecker-in-chief in his side's dominant start to the home Test series against Pakistan. The right-arm pacer delivered a career-best performance in the opening Test at Headingley with figures of 8-80.
He raised the bar further in the second Test at the SSC Ground in Colombo, striking 103 in the first essay and remaining unbeaten on 133 in the second to help Sri Lanka secure a hard-fought and epic draw. Dinusha finished the series as the leading run-getter on either side, accumulating 420 runs at a staggering average of 140 across the two matches.
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Meanwhile, Bangladesh fast bowler Mahmud came into the spotlight via being the architect of his country's landmark Test victory on Australian soil. The pacer produced a match-winning display during the Darwin Test triumph, picking up 6-55 in the first innings and 3-56 in the second essay to engineer a famous victory for Bangladesh. Hasan finished the two-match Test series in Australia, which ended in a 1-1 draw, with nine wickets at an average of 19.77.