5 Popular Player Duos Who Have Shared M.O.M Award For The Same Test Match

As the name itself suggests, a Man/Player of the Match award is usually given to a single player for exemplary performance in a game. Although it is usually given to a player from the winning team, we have also seen the opposite happen. In this article, we take a look at five popular player duos who have shared the M.O.M award for the same Test match in the game's history.

At times, it could be really hard to choose a Player of the Match if there is more than one good performer from the game. The commentators, who usually pick the player, have a tough time nailing down the decision. At times, we have seen the award being shared between two players. This article focuses on some such popular pairs. In the format's history, on 14 occasions, two players from the same team have been given the M.O.M award, while on 26 instants, two players from different teams have been given the award for the same match.

1) Andy Flower & Grant Flower

Game - Zimbabwe vs Pakistan || Year - 1995 || Result - Zimbabwe won

Andy Flower and Grant Flower belong to this list of popular player duos who have shared the M.O.M award for the same Test match in the game's history. One of the reasons Zimbabwe were doing well in the past was because of the Flower brothers. In one game, they even got the Player of the Match Award. Batting first against Pakistan, while Grant got a double-hundred, Andy scored 156 runs. This eventually set up the game for Zimbabwe. The host nation won the game comfortably, and the M.O.M award was shared by the brothers.

2) Ravi Shastri & John Wright

Game - New Zealand vs India || Year - 1981 || Result - Draw

Interestingly, the current and the former Head Coach of India also belong to this list. This game was in 1981 and took place in Auckland. The game ended in a draw but the performances by John Wright and Ravi Shastri were defining ones and hence, both were rewarded. While it was John's show with the bat that helped him, Ravi picked up a total of seven wickets in the game, which helped India draw the game.

3) Shaun Pollock & Mark Boucher

Game - Zimbabwe vs South Africa || Year - 1999 || Result - South Africa won

Shaun Pollock and Mark Boucher have been part of several wins for South Africa. However, on one occasion, the duo shared a Man of the Match Award. It was against Zimbabwe in 1999. South Africa eventually won the game due to the massive contributions by Pollock and Boucher. While Pollock got seven wickets and a half-century, Boucher hit a hundred apart from collecting a few catches.

4) Dale Steyn & Morne Morkel

Game - England vs South Africa || Year - 2010 || Result - South Africa won

In the fourth Test match when England toured South Africa in 2010, Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn helped the hosts complete a convincing victory. The pace-duo was one of the best at that time in the game. Both had pace in their armoury apart from being excellent technicians with the cherry. Both got seven wickets and hence, shared the M.O.M award.

5) Harbhajan Singh & Matthew Hayden

Game - India vs Australia || Year - 2001 || Result - India won

Australia's Tour of India marked the special performances of many players including Harbhajan Singh. He was in top form throughout the series. In the game at Chennai, both Bhajji and Matthew Hayden played really well and hence, the game could not have another result apart from a draw. While Harbhajan got 15 wickets in the game, Hayden scored a double-century in the first innings.