World T20: Watson named player of the tournament

Australian all-rounder Shane Watson was named the player of the tournament at the conclusion of the World Twenty20 at the R. Premadasa Stadium here Sunday.

Watson was the unanimous choice of the select group of experts following his sensational form that helped guide his side to the semi-final before they were knocked out by West Indies.

The 31-year-old batted six innings in the tournament, scoring a total of 249 runs at an average of 49.80.

He also took 11 wickets at an average of 16 and an economy rate of 7.33 with his extremely useful medium pace bowling.

Watson, who collected his trophy at the post-match presentation, said: "Although we didn't quite reach our team goal of winning this tournament, on a personal note it's an honour to be named as the player of the tournament."

"Going into the tournament, I knew that if we could get our batting innings off to a good start it would hold us in good shape and it was nice that I could put on a few partnerships with Dave Warner and Mike Hussey and to pick up a few wickets and play a role with the ball was great too."

Watson got four consecutive man-of-the-match awards during the tournament.