Ahmed Wins Five Awards As Club Celebrates Historic Campaign
Thu 2 Oct 2025
Rehan Ahmed won a whopping five of the eight Men’s awards on offer as the Leicestershire and England star cleaned up at the Club’s annual End of Season Dinner on Wednesday evening.
Opener Sol Budinger and overseas all-rounder Logan van Beek were also recognised in the Men’s categories, while double-award winner Francesca Sweet headlined the Women’s honours. Ellie Phillips and Lucy Weston also received trophies for their 2025 performances.
Celebrating a historic season for the Club - as Leicestershire romped to the Division Two title while Leicestershire Women enjoyed a ground-breaking first campaign as a Tier Two county “ players and coaches from both sides were joined by staff, supporters and sponsors at Winstanley House to toast an unforgettable year.
Ahmed began a trophy-laden night by earning the Young Player of the Year award before collecting the John Josephs Cup “ citing Best Individual Performance “ for his incredible all-round display in July’s win over Derbyshire, during which he scored 115 and recorded astonishing match figures of 13/144.
The Academy graduate was then recognised by the Foxes’ fans, beating Ben Cox and Lewis Hill to Supporters’ Player of the Year, while he was unanimously chosen as Players' Player of the Year by his teammates.
Ahmed rounded off the evening by claiming the coveted Cricketer of the Year award, selected by Leicestershire’s coaching staff. His quintet of honours follows an outstanding 2025 summer, with the 21-year-old scoring five centuries en route to lifting the Division Two title while taking 34 wickets across formats.
Elsewhere, Budinger “ who finished as Leicestershire’s leading run scorer with 1,334 runs “ took home the Livingston Cup for Men’s Batter of the Year, while van Beek celebrated his debut season at Uptonsteel County Ground by winning both the Frank S Smith Cup for Bowler of the Year and the Roger Goadby Trophy for his run-saving displays in the field.
Similarly, Cesca Sweet marked a sublime first season with Leicestershire by scooping a pair of awards. Finishing as the second-highest run scorer in Vitality Blast League 2 as the Foxes reached Finals Day, and amassing 671 runs across formats, the 21-year-old earned both Women’s Batter of the Year and Women's Players’ Player of the Year.
Leading wicket-taker Ellie Phillips was presented with Women’s Bowler of the Year, while all-rounder Lucy Weston was chosen as Coaches’ Player of the Year for Stephen Franklin’s side.
The Club also paid tribute to outgoing Cricket Operations Manager, Dan Nice, who is departing after an incredible 21 seasons of dedicated service to several departments at Grace Road, with a personalised trophy presented by Director of Cricket, Claude Henderson.
