Blackcaps allrounder Daryl Mitchell has scooped the 2021 ICC Spirit of Cricket Award, after refusing to take a run during the T20 World Cup semi-finals at Abu Dhabi in November.
Promoted to open the batting during the tournament, Mitchell and fellow allrounder Jimmy Neesham were chasing down England's 166/4, when Neesham called for a sharp single and Mitchell declined, recognising he had impeded bowler Adil Rashid from fielding the ball.
Ultimately, Mitchell, 30, was named Man of the Match for his unbeaten 72 runs off 47 balls, as New Zealand toppled the tournament favourites, before eventually falling to Australia in the final.
"The game that we play, we play it because we love it," he admits. "Yes, we want to win as much as we can, but we don’t want that to come about from doing things that go against the values of cricket.
"Spirit of Cricket is vitally important. It sets a platform for kids in the future, who will go about playing the game in the right way.
"At the end of the day, it is a game, it's something that we love, so obviously we're so lucky to do that."
Mitchell becomes the fourth Blackcaps player to win the individual award over the past decade, after Daniel Vettori (2012), Brendon McCullum (2015) and Kane Williamson (2018). Previously, New Zealand had taken out team honours in 2004, 2009 and 2010.
At the time, English commentator Nasser Hussain praised Mitchell's gesture effusively.
"That is very good, that is so New Zealand, it really is," he said. "So easy to take a run there, but the non-strike said, 'No, I've got in the way of Adil'.
"Anything sums up New Zealand cricket, it was that."
Days before the incident, retired British umpire Bruce Oxenford held the NZ side up as an example for other international teams to follow.
"They are amazing,'' Oxenford told The Courier Mail. "They could be world champions in all three formats had it not been for an incorrect call on an overthrow in the 50-over World Cup and that day they just got on with it.
"New Zealand just don't waste energy on things they cannot control - it is such a vital thing for all sportspeople. If you start concerning yourself with things that go wrong, you can forget about the things that need to go right."
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