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- Virat Kohli, who took over as Test captain in the middle of the tour of Australia after Mahendra Singh Dhoni's sudden retirement, ended India's 22-year wait for a series win on Sri Lankan soil before battering World No. 1 South Africa 3-0.
Continuing his meteoric rise, India Test captain Virat Kohli was on Thursday named 'Cricketer of the Year', while Mithali Raj was picked for the top women's award in the Board of Control for Cricket in India's annual honours to be given away on January 5 in Mumbai.
- 2015 Rewind: Kohli leads new dawn of Indian cricket
The 27-year-old batsman, who took over as captain in the middle of the tour of Australia after Mahendra Singh Dhoni's sudden retirement, delivered some good results under his leadership.
Under Kohli, the Indian team ended a 22-year wait for a series win on Sri Lankan soil before battering World No. 1 South Africa 3-0 to hand the Proteas their first overseas loss in nine years.
The right-hander excelled with the bat too, scoring 640 runs in 15 Test innings that he played at an average of 42.67. In his 20 ODI outings this year, Kohli managed 623 runs at an average of 36.65.
Mithali, on the other hand, became the first Indian woman and second overall to complete 5,000 runs in ODI format this year. Mithali will be presented with the M A Chidambaram Trophy for the best women's cricketer.
In other awards, former wicketkeeper Syed Kirmani will be presented the Col. C K Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award.
Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) has been chosen as the State Association of the Year for achieving the treble of winning the Ranji Trophy, Irani Cup and Vijay Hazare Trophy in the season.
Karnataka all-rounder Robin Uthappa was named for the Madhavrao Scindia Award for being the highest run-scorer in Ranji Trophy. Uthappa scored 912 runs in 11 matches, averaging 50.66.
The top wicket-taker's award is being shared this year by Karnataka's R Vinay Kumar and Mumbai's Shardul Thakur, both of whom scalped 48 in the previous season.