Two millionaires were created in the latest round of Dubai's Mahzooz lottery.
The lucky winners each scooped Dh1 million ($272,242) after matching five of the six numbers in the draw.
One of the delighted winners, Syam Subhash, 47, an Indian living in Oman's capital Muscat, said he would use the money to help his family back home and people in need.
Mr Subhash received an email he will never forget after missing the live draw.
"I wasn't able to watch the draw show this weekend, so I was surprised when I got an email saying I had won," said Mr Subhash, who played the lottery online from his home.
“Then I saw the figure and I couldn’t believe it. I went on YouTube, watched the draw and confirmed the numbers.”
This led to Mr Subhash, who works in the construction industry, making a call to his wife at home in Kerala, south-west India. She could not believe her husband’s good news.
“I called my wife. My family is back in India and it was late, so my call woke her up. She thought I was joking,” he said.
"I want to buy land and build a home for my family in Kerala. We can start planning our future now.
“Additionally, I want to give some of this money to help people in need.”
The other winner was an Emirati named Sultan, who did not share his surname.
“I got an email saying I won and I just couldn’t believe it,” he said.
“I was in shock. I don’t think it felt real until I got the call from Mahzooz – only then did I truly believe this is happening. It really feels great.
"I’ve been trying to make plans for the money but the first thing I’ll do is take care of any loans either my family or I have. After that, we’ll see. I haven’t fully figured it out yet.”
Players must register online and buy a Dh35 bottle of water to enter.
Money collected by Mahzooz, through the sale of water bottles, is donated to charity.
FIXTURES
Thu Mar 15 – West Indies v Afghanistan, UAE v Scotland
Fri Mar 16 – Ireland v Zimbabwe
Sun Mar 18 – Ireland v Scotland
Mon Mar 19 – West Indies v Zimbabwe
Tue Mar 20 – UAE v Afghanistan
Wed Mar 21 – West Indies v Scotland
Thu Mar 22 – UAE v Zimbabwe
Fri Mar 23 – Ireland v Afghanistan
The top two teams qualify for the World Cup
Classification matches
The top-placed side out of Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong or Nepal will be granted one-day international status. UAE and Scotland have already won ODI status, having qualified for the Super Six.
Thu Mar 15 – Netherlands v Hong Kong, PNG v Nepal
Sat Mar 17 – 7th-8th place playoff, 9th-10th place play-off
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