Yousuf, Younis, Afridi among nominees for ICC awards

DUBAI—Pakistan's Mohammad Yousuf, Younis Khan and Shahid Afridi are among nominees for the ICC best players award for Best Player of the Year, Best Test Player and Best One-day Player of Year awards. Pakistan's pacemen Mohammad Asif is among the nominees for the Emerging Player award.
Rahul Dravid, Ricky Ponting and Mahela Jayawardene have been nominated for four International Cricket Council (ICC) awards, it was announced here.
The Test captains from India, Australia and Sri Lanka dominated the nominations, including the Sir Garfield Sobers Award for the cricketer of the year.
Ashes hero Andrew Flintoff of England and Sri Lankan spin wizard Muttiah Muralitharan were the other prominent players in the running for the top award, which included a surprise nominee in young England spinner Monty Panesar.
Dravid, Ponting and Jayawardene were also in contention for three other awards - Test Player of the Year, Captain of the Year and One-Day Player of the Year.
The awards, covering performances from August 1, 2005 to August 8, 2006, will be presented on October 23 in Mumbai during the Champions Trophy tournament, ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed said.
The nominations were compiled by five former Test stars led by Sunil Gavaskar of India, who is also the chairman of the ICC's Cricket Committee.
The other selectors were Allan Donald of South Africa, Ian Healy of Australia, Arjuna Ranatunga of Sri Lanka and Waqar Younis of Pakistan.
The final selection will be voted by a 56-member ICC academy comprising the 10 Test captains, 18 members of the umpires and match referees panel and 28 legends of the game and members of the media.
The Captain of the Year and Women's Cricketer of the Year awards have been introduced this year.
"Cricket is not just about runs, wickets and catches," said Speed on Wednesday. "It is also about tactics and the way a side conducts itself and the captain plays a pivotal role in those aspects of the game.
"The Captain of the Year Award is designed to recognize the leader's contribution to the game and to the spirit of cricket we all value so highly.
"The Award for Women's Cricketer of the Year is a welcome and very appropriate addition to this year's ceremony.
"It will serve to showcase the very best women's cricketers, something that is vital as the ICC seeks to ensure the continued growth of the game at all levels."
Nominations:
Cricketer of the Year: Ricky Ponting (AUS), Shane Warne (AUS), Muttiah Muralitharan (SRI), Michael Hussey (AUS), Andrew Flintoff (ENG), Mohammed Yousuf (PAK), Rahul Dravid (IND), Mahela Jayawardene (SRI), Younis Khan (PAK), Monty Panesar (ENG), Brett Lee (AUS), Makhaya Ntini (RSA), Adam Gilchrist (AUS).
Test Player of the Year: Michael Hussey (AUS), Ricky Ponting (AUS), Mohammed Yousuf (PAK), Andrew Flintoff (ENG), Shane Warne (AUS), Muttiah Muralitharan (SRI), Kumar Sangakarra (SRI), Rahul Dravid (IND), Mahela Jayawardene (SRI), Kevin Pietersen (ENG), Younis Khan (PAK), Matthew Hayden (AUS), Makhaya Ntini (RSA).
One-day Player of the Year: Yuvraj Singh (IND), Michael Hussey (AUS), Ricky Ponting (AUS), Shane Bond (NZL), Irfan Pathan (IND), Andrew Flintoff (ENG), Mahela Jayawardene (SRI), Muttiah Muralitharan (SRI), Rahul Dravid (IND), Kevin Pietersen (ENG), Mohammed Yousuf (PAK), Herschelle Gibbs (RSA), Brett Lee (AUS), Shahid Afridi (PAK), Inzamam-ul Haq (PAK), Adam Gilchrist (AUS), Kumar Sangakkara (SRI).
Emerging Player of the Year: Monty Panesar (ENG), Alastair Cook (ENG), Denesh Ramdin (WIS), Malinga Bandara (SRI), Mohammed Asif (PAK), Upul Tharanga (SRI), Ian Bell (ENG), Shahriar Nafees (BAN).
Captain of the Year: Michael Vaughan (ENG), Rahul Dravid (IND), Ricky Ponting (AUS), Mahela Jayawardene (SRI).
Umpire of the Year: Simon Taufel (AUS), Aleem Dar (PAK), Rudi Koertzen (RSA).
Women's Cricketer of the Year: Karen Rolton (AUS), Cathryn Fitzpatrick (AUS), Anjum Chopra (IND), Neetu David (IND), Claire Taylor (ENG), Katherine Brunt (ENG), Emily Drumm (NZL).—Agencies