When the UAE captain Ahmed Raza was assigned to lead Fujairah in the Dream 11 Emirates D20 this month, he had some concerns.
Mainly, they centred on the fact he knew little about his new teammates, aside from his former schoolmate and long-term national team colleague Rohan Mustafa.
When he then found out one of his bowling options was to be a 15-year-old spinner who looked even younger than that, and was half his size, too, he might have feared the next few weeks were going to be a struggle.
Now, though, after two matches playing alongside schoolboy left-armer Aayan Khan, he has some different thoughts entirely.
Essentially, he wishes he had been that good when he was that age.
“I wasn’t anything like close to [being as good] as what he is,” Raza said of his young colleague.
“There are similarities between us, actually, I have noticed from when I have spoken to him. But I was obviously not even close to that level when I was 15.
“He is a smart kid. I was going to give him the new ball today, and I asked him before the game if he would be OK with that.
“Honestly, I didn’t know a lot about him, and had never seen him play a game, so it was about getting to know him yesterday and learning about his game.
“When I asked him if he wanted to bowl with the new ball, he was very confident, and said he always bowls with it.
"I said ‘OK, here you go then,’ and he delivered.”
Raza was a high achiever at a young age himself, debuting in the UAE senior men’s side in 2006 when he was just a few months past his 17th birthday.
But his praise for Aayan was not false modesty. The diminutive teenager took 2-23 to set the platform for Fujairah’s win over Dubai on the second day of the T20 competition.
His two wickets each came the same way, via stumpings by another teenager, the 17-year-old wicketkeeper Hamdan Tahir.
Aayan was born in Goa, but has lived in the UAE since he was two.
He started playing cricket aged four at the prolific Desert Cubs Cricket Academy, and captains his school age group side at Our Own English High School in Sharjah
"I have played a lot of men's tournaments in Ajman already, so I knew [teammates Mohammed] Wasim-sir, Ahmed bhai and Rohan bhai," Aayan said.
“It is a good experience for me. My ambition is to become a professional cricketer and I am trying my best to do that, and hopefully play for either India or UAE.”
Aayan is not the only young left-arm spinner to have shone already in the D20.
Former UAE U19 captain Aryan Lakra took five wickets on the opening day, while Rahul Bhatia, 22, bowled a maiden as he went for just 17 in four overs for Dubai against Fujairah.
All of which means there is a production line of players pushing to take Raza’s place in the UAE line up.
Typically, he was outstanding himself, as he took 1-12 from four overs in the four-wicket win, and he says he welcomes the competition for places in the national team.
“That is good because you want people who push you even harder,” Raza said.
“It is really good to see so many spinners doing well, especially on a pitch which mostly favours the fast bowlers.”
Mustafa was named player of the match, as he navigated the run chase for Fujairah with a canny half-century at the Dubai International Stadium.
The years Ramadan fell in May
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
The biog
Age: 35
Inspiration: Wife and kids
Favourite book: Changes all the time but my new favourite is Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
Best Travel Destination: Bora Bora , French Polynesia
Favourite run: Jabel Hafeet, I also enjoy running the 30km loop in Al Wathba cycling track
'Tell the Machine Goodnight' by Katie Williams
Penguin Randomhouse
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Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
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Sustainable Development Goals
1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere
2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture
3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages
4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all
5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all
7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all
9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation
10. Reduce inequality within and among countries
11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its effects
14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development
15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss
16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development
Jawan
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Recent winners
2002 Giselle Khoury (Colombia)
2004 Nathalie Nasralla (France)
2005 Catherine Abboud (Oceania)
2007 Grace Bijjani (Mexico)
2008 Carina El-Keddissi (Brazil)
2009 Sara Mansour (Brazil)
2010 Daniella Rahme (Australia)
2011 Maria Farah (Canada)
2012 Cynthia Moukarzel (Kuwait)
2013 Layla Yarak (Australia)
2014 Lia Saad (UAE)
2015 Cynthia Farah (Australia)
2016 Yosmely Massaad (Venezuela)
2017 Dima Safi (Ivory Coast)
2018 Rachel Younan (Australia)
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key facilities
- 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
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Zayed Sustainability Prize
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.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
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Seven tips from Emirates NBD
1. Never respond to e-mails, calls or messages asking for account, card or internet banking details
2. Never store a card PIN (personal identification number) in your mobile or in your wallet
3. Ensure online shopping websites are secure and verified before providing card details
4. Change passwords periodically as a precautionary measure
5. Never share authentication data such as passwords, card PINs and OTPs (one-time passwords) with third parties
6. Track bank notifications regarding transaction discrepancies
7. Report lost or stolen debit and credit cards immediately
Our legal advisor
Rasmi Ragy is a senior counsel at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.
Experience: Prosecutor in Egypt with more than 40 years experience across the GCC.
Education: Ain Shams University, Egypt, in 1978.
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