Sportsfreak gives an in depth look at the ICC awards in all their glory.
And I stick my nose in as well.
Cricket has a bit of an issue for the next few weeks. None of it is being played. The cancellation of the ICC Champions Trophy 2008 on the back of the odd bombing has left a hole in a calendar which is normally splitting at the seams like Jacques Kallis’s strides.
So what do you do when you’ve got a hole to fill, and your target demographic has an increasingly brief attention span?
You organise an Awards Ceremony of course.
It’s been a busy day in Dubai . The period that this covers includes the inaugural T20 World Cup ( remember that? ), the bun-fight around Australia last summer, various totally forgettable South African victories, home and away series between NZ and England, and a series between Australia and Chanderpaul.
For those people looking for Prince Brendan’s name in the various categories, it does not include that IPL. That tournament is not run by the ICC, remember?
Sportsfreak looks at the various categories.
Cricketer of the Year: Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Dale Steyn, Mahela Jayawardene, Graeme Smith
The glaring omission here is Sangakarra. So is scoring 192 against Australia before being sawn off in a dreadful piece of umpiring just as your side is within sight of victory, and taking it with grace not good enough then?
Compare that with Steyn who got most of his wickets at home, Jayawardene who has been nothing flash this year and Smith who has hardly had his best year either.
Chanderpaul should walk in here.
CWB's pick: is also the Chrab, although Roy and Sehwag must have been annoyed not to get a look in.
Test Player of the Year: Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Dale Steyn, Mahela Jayawardene, Jacques Kallis
Add in Kallis and take out Smith.
If anything that makes it worse. If there’s any justice in the world it will be Shiv again.
CWB's Pick: Shiv again.
ODI Player of the Year: Nathan Bracken, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar, Mohammad Yousuf
What a rag-tag bunch this is.
Bracken of Alice Band fame might be the best bowler in the world without a show of making a test side, but there is no award for that. He’s not even the top ranked ODI bowler.
Dhoni looks the part, and is probably only here for Indian TV ratings.
Tendulkar is probably past it now, but did manage to hobble around for a couple of match-winning knocks when it mattered in the finals series of the CUB trophy.
And has Yousuf played this year?
A farewell gift for Tendulkar here.
CWB's Pick: Probaby out of Bracken and Dhoni, toss a coin if you care.
Emerging Player of the Year: Stuart Broad, Ajantha Mendis, Ishant Sharma, Morne Morkel
So what have we got here?
A fast bowler with comically androgynous looks averaging around 40, the lastest Sri Lankan with a strange delivery, another fast bowler who has a growth coming out of his neck who ruined Ponting’s year, and the latest in the South African production line of deranged fast bowlers.
A lot of people complain about there being no decent bowlers coming though, so that’s not a bad lineup really; Mendis should just pip Inshant.
Cwb's pick: He of the adams apple.
Associate Player of the Year: Ryan ten Doeschate, Alex Obanda, Niall O'Brien, Thomas Odoyo
Ten Doeschate probably.
Cwb's pick: I'll go O'Brien.
Twenty20 International Performance of the Year: Chris Gayle, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Brett Lee, Yuvraj Singh
This must be a new category.
What happened in that T20 World Cup again? India won, so Dhoni must get some points. Not too sure about Gayle and Lee. But neither side made the final.
No, it has to be Yuvraj; he hit Broad for 36 in an over.
Cwb's pick: I don't get the question.
Women's Player of the Year: Lisa Sthalekar, Charlotte Edwards, Claire Taylor, Nicola Browne
At last, a New Zealander to the fore.
Go Nicola Browne
Cwb's pick: Charlotte Edwards, although if Lisa won wouldn't it be cool trying to watch someone pronounce it.
Spirit of Cricket: Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, West Indies
Look, New Zealand is on a roll now.
The finalists here would seem to be thrown together by default really. It couldn’t be India and Australia after their prolonged bitch-slap / name-calling / leave the plane idling on the runway soap opera that dragged out for the first 3 months of the year.
England were omitted partly for revelations of previous minties-related ball tampering sins, partly because of Lord Collingwood’s run-out at the Oval and partly as a wind-up.
Obviously South Africa are ineligible for such an award while they have players who are too scared to travel to India, as well as Andre Nel in their team.
Pakistan are unable to have anyone around to their house any more, and they will go through 2008 without playing a single test match. Even limited overs specialists like New Zealand will get through 12 of these.
And Zimbabwe are Zimbabwe.
Sri Lanka should win it on the basis that they spent most of the 12 months having to play India and Australia. Although the ICC might still be feeling guilty about the World Cup and give it to the West Indies.
Cwb's pick: who cares.
Umpire of the Year: Simon Taufel, Mark Benson, Aleem Dar, Steve Davis, Rudi Koertzen
Rudi Koertzen???!!!!! Lets save the worst until last.
Taufel by a mile.
Cwb's pick: Steve Bucknor.
Of course, the luminaries who decide all this will probably go for more photogenic winners than we have to adorn the pages of Cricinfo.
But we would just like to thank our parents for making this happen.
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