A former teacher, who spent the first season of the DP World International League T20 trying to get his students to attend matches, was to thank for discovering one of the outstanding new players of Season 3.
Khuzaima Tanveer grabbed the attention of cricket lovers midway through the latest campaign of the UAE’s franchise tournament.
He was unknown ahead of his debut for Desert Vipers against Sharjah Warriorz. By the end of that match, he had four wickets, a player of the match trophy, and had conducted three TV interviews, including with the great Pakistan fast bowler Waqar Younis.
By the end of the tournament, he had a runner-up medal, and the endorsement of one of the world’s leading fast bowlers. Lockie Ferguson, the Vipers captain, said he envied Khuzaima’s bowling action.
The Pakistan-born newcomer’s emergence came about by chance, when he was bowling in a low-key domestic tournament. The opposing batter happened to be Jack Luffman, the development lead for the Vipers.
“I was opening the batting against him and I thought, ‘Oh dear, I might be getting a bit too old for this,’” Luffman said.
Luffman played minor counties cricket in the UK before moving to Dubai to take up a teaching job. It was in his role as the head of sixth form at a GEMS school that he was asked to help spread the word about the new franchise league in 2023.
That included giving out Desert Vipers shirts and hats, as well as tickets to their matches. He stayed in close contact with the franchise, and, as a Level 3 qualified cricket coach, was offered a role as part of their plan to lay down roots.
He left his teaching job last year to work full time with the Vipers’ schools and development programme.
“Getting a full-time role in cricket was too good an offer to turn down,” Luffman said. “It has its risks because we are in professional sport, and I was going from a fairly stable job within education.
“We want to be a franchise that is here for 12 months of the year, not just for four or five weeks. That is not a criticism [of the other teams]. It is just the nature of the T20 merry-go-round.”
Luffman also plays amateur cricket for the club he helped found, Dubai Wanderers. It was while playing for them that he first encountered Khuzaima, who was newly arrived from Pakistan.
With the endorsement of his Wanderers teammates, Arron Lilley and Jordan Clark, who both have experience of county cricket, he closely monitored Khuzaima’s progress.
“It is not just about ability,” Luffman said. “[The Vipers] are really big on the environment we create. You have to be a certain type of player.
“What struck us about Khuzaima was, other than the fact he bowls quick, is strong, can field and hold the bat, is that he is a really, really nice kid.
“He wants to ask questions and learn. He looks after himself, does extra stretches before warm ups, and does cool downs afterwards, even between innings.
“It became obvious he was someone we needed to go for in the main draft [ahead of ILT20 Season 3]. We were delighted to get him. We are really excited about what he can bring to the Vipers and UAE cricket.
“Like Tom Moody [Vipers’ director of cricket] said, if there is a better fast bowler in the country than him, I would like to see them.”
Ferguson, the New Zealand fast bowler, echoed that sentiment.
“Khuzaima has been a real stand out,” Ferguson said. “The way he has gone about his training from the very beginning of the tournament shows he is constantly trying to get better.
“I love his bowling action. I wish mine looked as pretty as that. He is very young in terms of a fast-bowling career, but his skill set is exceptional.
“Even in the short time he has been in this tournament we have seen him grow and grow, including in the [qualifier play-off against the Warriorz] when he bowled a beautiful last over.
“He is an exciting prospect for UAE in terms of international cricket and I think he is going to have a lot of success in the future.”
Khuzaima had to bide his time until he got his chance in the tournament. The game against the Warriorz in which he debuted was the Vipers’ sixth of the season.
Luffman said he was thrilled for the 25-year-old quick, who will have to wait for around a year and a half to be eligible for selection for the UAE via the ICC’s residency criteria.
“I saw him that morning at breakfast, and he thanked me,” Luffman said.
“He calls everybody ‘sir’. To see him doing so well in that first game and beyond, it shows he has pace, he is a fit, strong boy, he has skills, and he has bottle, which goes a long way at this level.
“We are really excited by what he can do. He seemed to rush everybody, even some of the world’s best players. Now they know who he is, which is his next challenge when he plays against them.
“But that day in Sharjah, I was absolutely delighted for him, a little like a proud dad.”
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• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.
Results
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Directed by: Craig Brewer
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, Jermaine Fowler, Leslie Jones
3/5 stars
UAE v Gibraltar
What: International friendly
When: 7pm kick off
Where: Rugby Park, Dubai Sports City
Admission: Free
Online: The match will be broadcast live on Dubai Exiles’ Facebook page
UAE squad: Lucas Waddington (Dubai Exiles), Gio Fourie (Exiles), Craig Nutt (Abu Dhabi Harlequins), Phil Brady (Harlequins), Daniel Perry (Dubai Hurricanes), Esekaia Dranibota (Harlequins), Matt Mills (Exiles), Jaen Botes (Exiles), Kristian Stinson (Exiles), Murray Reason (Abu Dhabi Saracens), Dave Knight (Hurricanes), Ross Samson (Jebel Ali Dragons), DuRandt Gerber (Exiles), Saki Naisau (Dragons), Andrew Powell (Hurricanes), Emosi Vacanau (Harlequins), Niko Volavola (Dragons), Matt Richards (Dragons), Luke Stevenson (Harlequins), Josh Ives (Dubai Sports City Eagles), Sean Stevens (Saracens), Thinus Steyn (Exiles)
FROM%20THE%20ASHES
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The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
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German intelligence warnings
- 2002: "Hezbollah supporters feared becoming a target of security services because of the effects of [9/11] ... discussions on Hezbollah policy moved from mosques into smaller circles in private homes." Supporters in Germany: 800
- 2013: "Financial and logistical support from Germany for Hezbollah in Lebanon supports the armed struggle against Israel ... Hezbollah supporters in Germany hold back from actions that would gain publicity." Supporters in Germany: 950
- 2023: "It must be reckoned with that Hezbollah will continue to plan terrorist actions outside the Middle East against Israel or Israeli interests." Supporters in Germany: 1,250
Source: Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution
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- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
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The biog
Family: wife, four children, 11 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren
Reads: Newspapers, historical, religious books and biographies
Education: High school in Thatta, a city now in Pakistan
Regrets: Not completing college in Karachi when universities were shut down following protests by freedom fighters for the British to quit India
Happiness: Work on creative ideas, you will also need ideals to make people happy
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Juventus 1 (Dybala 45')
Lazio 3 (Alberto 16', Lulic 73', Cataldi 90 4')
Red card: Rodrigo Bentancur (Juventus)
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Creator: Mike White
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Borussia Dortmund 0
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THE SPECS
Engine: 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)
Power: 141bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: Dh64,500
On sale: Now
