Ahmed Raza admits UAE’s cricketers are hurt by the prospect of sitting by and watching a World Cup take place on their doorstep.
But the national team captain says they have already laid down a marker for qualification for the next one.
UAE completed an uplifting comeback win over Ireland in a T20 international series in Dubai on Sunday.
And yet it is the Irish, and not the host team, who will be lining up at the T20 World Cup when it starts next week.
Coincidentally, UAE also beat Ireland in the qualification competition for this World Cup, two years ago, only to miss out after they were waylaid by a corruption scandal.
Three UAE players were thrown out of the squad as part of that corruption investigation in 2019. As a result, Raza took up the captaincy, and he has been a central figure in rebuilding the game here in the time since.
Playing their first international cricket since January, the national team had initially looked rusty as they were trounced in the first match of the T20I series against Ireland.
They bounced back in imperious fashion, though, sealing the series at the ICC Academy via 54-run and seven-wicket wins – the latter of which came on Raza’s 33rd birthday.
Raza said it “feels like my greatest achievement ever since taking over the captaincy,” but acknowledged it reopened sore feelings over missing out on the World Cup.
There is another T20 World Cup due to be played in Australia in 2022, and Raza is already looking ahead to the qualifying competition at the start of next year.
“I’d be lying if I said I’m not hurting,” Raza said.
Waseem hits century against Ireland in Dubai
“I can speak on behalf of everyone and say we are all hurting. It is happening in our own backyard and we are not part of it.
“We don’t feel like we are behind any of these teams, and we could beat any of them on any given day.
“It is good that it is hurting. We can turn this into a positive, and take it into the Qualifier [for the 2022 T20 World Cup] and know how painful the feeling of missing out on a World Cup is.
“We should channel this hurt in a way that, when we go to the Qualifier in five months’ time, we turn things round and make sure we go to the next World Cup.”
Raza is right to feel optimistic about the future, given the emergence of a variety of young players within the game in the UAE, but especially the flowering of Mohammed Waseem.
The opener has forged a fine reputation for himself in domestic cricket, as well as at the Abu Dhabi T10 last season, but was making his international debut in this series.
It took him three games to get his bearings, then he exploded on to the scene with a stunning assault on Ireland’s bowlers in the deciding third game.
Waseem blazed 107 not out in 62 balls, as UAE chased 135 to win with nearly four overs to spare, and sealed it with a huge six that nearly reached the neighbouring football field.
“He is an unbelievable talent, we all know that,” Raza said of Waseem.
“We did put a lot of pressure on him. There was so much expectation on his shoulders, and maybe he felt that in the first couple of games.
“It was really important for us to let him know that it is OK to fail, but that he should play his natural game. The way he batted [in the decider] was the ideal way for him to bat.
“I can vouch for this: in terms of most Associate bowling, he can literally take them down. He just needs to back himself. We always knew he was going to win us one game.”
A more familiar face also played a key role in the decider. Rohan Mustafa had suffered the rare indignity of being left out of the side for the second match, after a tough start to the series.
Yet he thrived when he was recalled, taking three vital wickets which dragged the national team back into the game.
“The way he responded when he came back after being left out of the team shows his character,” Raza said of Mustafa.
“You need such characters in your team, and a switched on Rony [Mustafa] in the best man you could have in your team.
“What he brings to the team is very different to anybody. He is that X-Factor player.
“It was a tough call, but we did win that game, and then we won the next game with Rony’s contributions.”
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2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, Leon.
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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Australia - 2nd; China - 1st; Bahrain - 2nd; Russia - 4th; Spain - 1st; Monaco - 7th; Canada - 1st; Azerbaijan - 5th; Austria - 4th; Britain - 1st; Hungary - 4th; Belgium - 1st; Italy - 1st; Singapore - 1st; Malaysia - 2nd; Japan - 1st; United States - 1st; Mexico - 9th
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
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Started: July 2016
Founders: Mukesh Bansal and Ankit Nagori
Based: Bangalore, India
Sector: Health & wellness
Size: 500 employees
Investment: $250 million
Investors: Accel, Oaktree Capital (US); Chiratae Ventures, Epiq Capital, Innoven Capital, Kalaari Capital, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Piramal Group’s Anand Piramal, Pratithi Investment Trust, Ratan Tata (India); and Unilever Ventures (Unilever’s global venture capital arm)
'Manmarziyaan' (Colour Yellow Productions, Phantom Films)
Director: Anurag Kashyap
Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Taapsee Pannu, Vicky Kaushal
Rating: 3.5/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Results
57kg quarter-finals
Zakaria Eljamari (UAE) beat Hamed Al Matari (YEM) by points 3-0.
60kg quarter-finals
Ibrahim Bilal (UAE) beat Hyan Aljmyah (SYR) RSC round 2.
63.5kg quarter-finals
Nouredine Samir (UAE) beat Shamlan A Othman (KUW) by points 3-0.
67kg quarter-finals
Mohammed Mardi (UAE) beat Ahmad Ondash (LBN) by points 2-1.
71kg quarter-finals
Ahmad Bahman (UAE) defeated Lalthasanga Lelhchhun (IND) by points 3-0.
Amine El Moatassime (UAE) beat Seyed Kaveh Safakhaneh (IRI) by points 3-0.
81kg quarter-finals
Ilyass Habibali (UAE) beat Ahmad Hilal (PLE) by points 3-0
Silent Hill f
Publisher: Konami
Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC
Rating: 4.5/5
The bio
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite travel destination: Maldives and south of France
Favourite pastime: Family and friends, meditation, discovering new cuisines
Favourite Movie: Joker (2019). I didn’t like it while I was watching it but then afterwards I loved it. I loved the psychology behind it.
Favourite Author: My father for sure
Favourite Artist: Damien Hurst
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
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- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
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David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
Why the Tourist Club?
Originally, The Club (which many people chose to call the “British Club”) was the only place where one could use the beach with changing rooms and a shower, and get refreshments.
In the early 1970s, the Government of Abu Dhabi wanted to give more people a place to get together on the beach, with some facilities for children. The place chosen was where the annual boat race was held, which Sheikh Zayed always attended and which brought crowds of locals and expatriates to the stretch of beach to the left of Le Méridien and the Marina.
It started with a round two-storey building, erected in about two weeks by Orient Contracting for Sheikh Zayed to use at one these races. Soon many facilities were planned and built, and members were invited to join.
Why it was called “Nadi Al Siyahi” is beyond me. But it is likely that one wanted to convey the idea that this was open to all comers. Because there was no danger of encountering alcohol on the premises, unlike at The Club, it was a place in particular for the many Arab expatriate civil servants to join. Initially the fees were very low and membership was offered free to many people, too.
Eventually there was a skating rink, bowling and many other amusements.
Frauke Heard-Bey is a historian and has lived in Abu Dhabi since 1968.
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Company profile
Name: Dukkantek
Started: January 2021
Founders: Sanad Yaghi, Ali Al Sayegh and Shadi Joulani
Based: UAE
Number of employees: 140
Sector: B2B Vertical SaaS(software as a service)
Investment: $5.2 million
Funding stage: Seed round
Investors: Global Founders Capital, Colle Capital Partners, Wamda Capital, Plug and Play, Comma Capital, Nowais Capital, Annex Investments and AMK Investment Office
DMZ facts
- The DMZ was created as a buffer after the 1950-53 Korean War.
- It runs 248 kilometers across the Korean Peninsula and is 4km wide.
- The zone is jointly overseen by the US-led United Nations Command and North Korea.
- It is littered with an estimated 2 million mines, tank traps, razor wire fences and guard posts.
- Donald Trump and Kim Jong-Un met at a building in Panmunjom, where an armistice was signed to stop the Korean War.
- Panmunjom is 52km north of the Korean capital Seoul and 147km south of Pyongyang, North Korea’s capital.
- Former US president Bill Clinton visited Panmunjom in 1993, while Ronald Reagan visited the DMZ in 1983, George W. Bush in 2002 and Barack Obama visited a nearby military camp in 2012.
- Mr Trump planned to visit in November 2017, but heavy fog that prevented his helicopter from landing.
Where to Find Me by Alba Arikha
Alma Books
Trolls World Tour
Directed by: Walt Dohrn, David Smith
Starring: Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake
Rating: 4 stars
