Not for the first time in his life, Ahmed Raza said he was inspired by Shane Warne when it came to calling time on his playing career – which goes down as one of the best in the history of the game in the UAE.
The Australian spin legend, Raza recalled, had said it was best to field questions asking why you are retiring now, rather than being told it is time to go.
Age 34, the left-arm spinner could unquestionably still do a job, be it in international cricket, franchise, or the club game. Now, though, he says is the time to move on to the next challenge.
After all, Raza, who was first inspired to play the sport when his dad took him to watch games at Sharjah Stadium while his car was being washed, could scarcely have eked out more from his playing days.
When he debuted for UAE, against future superstars like Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja, in a low-key List A game in Abu Dhabi in 2006, Raza was still at school.
While Rohit and Jadeja would go on to become Indian Premier League zillionaires, Raza would maintain a day job for the majority of his playing career.
He only went professional five years ago. Starting out as a pro sportsman age 29 left only a relatively short time to chase his dreams, and he was aware he had to prepare for life after playing.
He always hoped that would involve staying in cricket, and looked to coaching. While still captain of the senior men’s team, he was part of the coaching staff of the Under 19 side when they played at the World Cup in South Africa three years ago.
He says the offer to become the assistant coach of the national team was “timed perfectly,” and “made my decision [to retire] quite easy.” It also gave reason to pause and consider everything that has gone before.
“I feel like a lot of these years have gone in the blink of an eye,” Raza told The National.
“It feels like yesterday when I started playing. It has been an amazing journey and I have no regrets about anything.
“It is a bittersweet feeling as well, but when I think of UAE cricket I always try to think how I can make a difference to it.
“Now I feel like I can make a difference from this side of the game. I led the team the way I did. Now this job has come about, I feel as though I can continue making a difference.”
Raza’s greatest feat was righting a ship that was listing badly at the end of 2019. He was handed the captaincy of a side that had just seen three players suspended pending a corruption probe, on the eve of the 2019 T20 World Cup Qualifier.
Seven players have subsequently been banned from the sport because of the issue. Through it all, Raza helped rebuild the side, with an accent on youth that had hitherto been rare in UAE cricket.
The repair job was so successful that, the next time there was a chance to qualify for a T20 World Cup, Raza’s side routed all before them. The captain himself took five wickets in the win that clinched progress to Australia last year.
“The ambition of taking UAE to a World Cup was so high for me,” Raza said.
“When eventually that happened, there is nothing that can top that. It was the best feeling I had as a cricket player and the best feeling I had as a captain.”
Raza’s canny captaincy often overshadowed his bowling. As did the bowlers at the other end, he says. Not that that was an issue.
His focus was always on economy rather than wickets, such as when UAE played against the continent’s elite at the 2015 Asia Cup T20 in Bangladesh. Over the course of four successive matches against Oman, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan, Raza conceded just a single boundary.
“That Asia Cup was a memorable one, not just for how I did, but because if you want to summarise how I played my cricket for all these years, that was the highlight,” Raza said.
“I had the most economical figures going around at the time. I didn’t pick up many wickets, as I probably didn’t during the whole of my career.
“That was how I performed over the years. Even if I didn’t pick up wickets, I was economical and I took a lot of pride in doing that.
“If I wasn’t picking up wickets, I was containing so the guy at the other end could, and eventually it was a good partnership. I always saw it like that. It was never that I was greedy for wickets, I was always greedy to help in whatever possible way.”
Doing what you can to help others shine seems a pretty decent mantra for a coach. It is one that works for Raza.
“From the other side of the rope, as long as I am helping people perform to the best of their potential, eventually it will help the team to do well,” he said.
“That is something I have thought about. I will be working with the head coach [Robin Singh] and following his lead, but I will also have my own identity in how I work with people and help people.
“All coaches have different ideas and ways and means of doing it. I hope mine is approachable, where people can come up to me and discuss how they feel. Not just about how they feel about their cricket, but about how they feel in general.
“I have been in this sport for a very long time, I have seen all the ups and downs. I don’t think there has been anyone who has gone through so many highs and so many lows.”
The new role will pitch Raza back into the same dressing room as the coach who demoted him from the captaincy, as well as the player – CP Rizwan – who took on the armband. But Raza says he bears no ill will.
“I think my relationship with everyone in the squad has been really good,” he said.
“It is a two-way street, and I can’t take all the credit for that. But I think being approachable is one of the strengths I had as a captain and a senior player.
“I didn’t have a senior-junior thing. I spoke to [long-serving all-rounder Rohan Mustafa] the same way I spoke to [young wicketkeeper Vriitya Aravind] when he started.
“It is all about getting the best out of them. With CP, not much will change. The conversations will be different because I will be seeing it from the sidelines.
“It is always very easy from the sidelines, but it is hard from the middle. I do understand that. I will try and help him as much as I can.
“He is a good listener and I hope we will continue to work together and produce results. If we do that, ultimately it will help UAE cricket.”
EPL's youngest
- Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal)
15 years, 181 days old
- Max Dowman (Arsenal)
15 years, 235 days old
- Jeremy Monga (Leicester)
15 years, 271 days old
- Harvey Elliott (Fulham)
16 years, 30 days old
- Matthew Briggs (Fulham)
16 years, 68 days old
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Brief scores
Toss India, chose to bat
India 281-7 in 50 ov (Pandya 83, Dhoni 79; Coulter-Nile 3-44)
Australia 137-9 in 21 ov (Maxwell 39, Warner 25; Chahal 3-30)
India won by 26 runs on Duckworth-Lewis Method
Chatham House Rule
A mark of Chatham House’s influence 100 years on since its founding, was Moscow’s formal declaration last month that it was an “undesirable
organisation”.
The depth of knowledge and academics that it drew on
following the Ukraine invasion had broadcast Mr Putin’s chicanery.
The institute is more used to accommodating world leaders,
with Nelson Mandela, Margaret Thatcher among those helping it provide
authoritative commentary on world events.
Chatham House was formally founded as the Royal Institute of
International Affairs following the peace conferences of World War One. Its
founder, Lionel Curtis, wanted a more scientific examination of international affairs
with a transparent exchange of information and ideas.
That arena of debate and analysis was enhanced by the “Chatham
House Rule” states that the contents of any meeting can be discussed outside Chatham
House but no mention can be made identifying individuals who commented.
This has enabled some candid exchanges on difficult subjects
allowing a greater degree of free speech from high-ranking figures.
These meetings are highly valued, so much so that
ambassadors reported them in secret diplomatic cables that – when they were
revealed in the Wikileaks reporting – were thus found to have broken the rule. However,
most speeches are held on the record.
Its research and debate has offered fresh ideas to
policymakers enabling them to more coherently address troubling issues from climate
change to health and food security.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Rankings
ATP: 1. Novak Djokovic (SRB) 10,955 pts; 2. Rafael Nadal (ESP) 8,320; 3. Alexander Zverev (GER) 6,475 ( 1); 5. Juan Martin Del Potro (ARG) 5,060 ( 1); 6. Kevin Anderson (RSA) 4,845 ( 1); 6. Roger Federer (SUI) 4,600 (-3); 7. Kei Nishikori (JPN) 4,110 ( 2); 8. Dominic Thiem (AUT) 3,960; 9. John Isner (USA) 3,155 ( 1); 10. Marin Cilic (CRO) 3,140 (-3)
WTA: 1. Naomi Osaka (JPN) 7,030 pts ( 3); 2. Petra Kvitova (CZE) 6,290 ( 4); 3. Simona Halep (ROM) 5,582 (-2); 4. Sloane Stephens (USA) 5,307 ( 1); 5. Karolina Pliskova (CZE) 5,100 ( 3); 6. Angelique Kerber (GER) 4,965 (-4); 7. Elina Svitolina (UKR) 4,940; 8. Kiki Bertens (NED) 4,430 ( 1); 9. Caroline Wozniacki (DEN) 3,566 (-6); 10. Aryna Sabalenka (BLR) 3,485 ( 1)
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
The specs: 2018 Chevrolet Trailblazer
Price, base / as tested Dh99,000 / Dh132,000
Engine 3.6L V6
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Power 275hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 350Nm @ 3,700rpm
Fuel economy combined 12.2L / 100km
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Results
Stage 7:
1. Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto Soudal - 3:18:29
2. Sam Bennett (IRL) Deceuninck-QuickStep - same time
3. Phil Bauhaus (GER) Bahrain Victorious
4. Michael Morkov (DEN) Deceuninck-QuickStep
5. Cees Bol (NED) Team DSM
General Classification:
1. Tadej Pogacar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates - 24:00:28
2. Adam Yates (GBR) Ineos Grenadiers - 0:00:35
3. Joao Almeida (POR) Deceuninck-QuickStep - 0:01:02
4. Chris Harper (AUS) Jumbo-Visma - 0:01:42
5. Neilson Powless (USA) EF Education-Nippo - 0:01:45
Ziina users can donate to relief efforts in Beirut
Ziina users will be able to use the app to help relief efforts in Beirut, which has been left reeling after an August blast caused an estimated $15 billion in damage and left thousands homeless. Ziina has partnered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to raise money for the Lebanese capital, co-founder Faisal Toukan says. “As of October 1, the UNHCR has the first certified badge on Ziina and is automatically part of user's top friends' list during this campaign. Users can now donate any amount to the Beirut relief with two clicks. The money raised will go towards rebuilding houses for the families that were impacted by the explosion.”
TICKETS
For tickets for the two-day Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) event, entitled Dubai Invasion 2019, on September 27 and 28 go to www.meraticket.com.
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
Series information
Pakistan v Dubai
First Test, Dubai International Stadium
Sun Oct 6 to Thu Oct 11
Second Test, Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi
Tue Oct 16 to Sat Oct 20
Play starts at 10am each day
Teams
Pakistan
1 Mohammed Hafeez, 2 Imam-ul-Haq, 3 Azhar Ali, 4 Asad Shafiq, 5 Haris Sohail, 6 Babar Azam, 7 Sarfraz Ahmed, 8 Bilal Asif, 9 Yasir Shah, 10, Mohammed Abbas, 11 Wahab Riaz or Mir Hamza
Australia
1 Usman Khawaja, 2 Aaron Finch, 3 Shaun Marsh, 4 Mitchell Marsh, 5 Travis Head, 6 Marnus Labuschagne, 7 Tim Paine, 8 Mitchell Starc, 9 Peter Siddle, 10 Nathan Lyon, 11 Jon Holland
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
