Dubai, Dec 28 (Reporter) The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Saturday revealed the first wave of shortlists in the ICC Awards 2024, with nominees for the Emerging Men’s and Women’s Cricketer of the Year awards celebrating the outstanding talents that have made their mark in 2024 following a blockbuster year of international competition. With a host of exceptional new talent thriving on the international stage, the Emerging shortlists span eight nations, and are packed with elite performers from all formats of the game. A hugely competitive field in the ICC Emerging Men’s Cricketer of the Year sees four strong contenders vie for the accolade. England’s Gus Atkinson enjoyed a memorable start to his Test career, and is joined on the shortlist by Pakistan’s multi-format run-scorer Saim Ayub, West Indies pacer Shamar Joseph and record-breaking Sri Lankan batter Kamindu Mendis. Elsewhere, the ICC Emerging Women’s Cricketer of the Year pits four leading short-format talents against each other for the coveted title. Comprising the nominees are South African all-rounder Annerie Dercksen, Scotland’s Saskia Horley, India’s Shreyanka Patil and Ireland’s Freya Sargent, after all left a significant mark on international competition in 2024. The ICC Awards 2024 comprises 12 individual awards, with shortlists in nine categories being revealed by the ICC between 28 and 30 December. Shortlists have been drawn up by a specialist panel of cricket writers and broadcasters, who selected the nominees according to on-field performances and overall achievements in international cricket throughout the calendar year. Fans are now able to vote for their favourite Emerging players at www.icc-cricket.com, with other categories unlocked as further nominees are revealed by the ICC over the next two days. Fan voting results will be combined with selections made by a prominent panel of international cricket media - the ICC Voting Academy - to identify the winner in each of the shortlisted categories. Other categories which will be celebrated in the ICC Awards 2024 include the ICC Men’s and Women’s Associate Cricketers of the Year and the ICC Umpire of the Year. In addition to the individual awards, five ICC Teams of the Year will be also decided by the ICC Voting Academy, identifying the standout XIs across men’s and women’s international cricket during the calendar year. Winners of the ICC Awards 2024 will be announced in late January 2025...////...