Sangakkara bags ICC awards hat-trick

COLOMBO: Prolific Sri Lankan batsman Kumar Sangakkara stole the show with a hat-trick of International Cricket Council (ICC) awards in Colombo on Saturday.

The 34-year-old batsman-wicketkeeper bagged the Sir Garfield Sobers Trophy after being named Cricketer of the Year. He also won the Test Cricketer of the Year and People's Choice awards.

Performances over a 12-month period that ended on August 6, 2012 were taken into account.

Sangakkara scored 1,444 runs with five centuries in 14 Tests and 1,457 runs in 37 one-day internationals with three hundreds during the year.

The Sri Lankan fought off stiff competition from South Africans Hashim Amla and Vernon Philander, and Australian Michael Clarke, to win the trophy.

Virat Kohli of India was named the One-day Cricketer of the Year for scoring 1,733 runs in 31 matches with eight centuries.

West Indies spinner Sunil Narine, 24, won the Emerging Cricketer of the Year award for taking 12 wickets in three Tests and 28 in 15 one-day internationals.

Ireland's spinner George Dockrell was named Associate and Affiliate Cricketer of the Year ahead of team-mates Kevin O'Brien, Ed Joyce and Paul Stirling, and Afghanistan's Dawlat Zadran.

South African Richard Levi's unbeaten 117 off 51 balls against New Zealand was judged the Best Performance in Twenty20 Internationals. (AFP)