UAE face an uphill task against Ireland today as they look to get their faltering World Twenty20 campaign back on track.
Having lost the first match to Netherlands by six wickets on Monday, Khurram Khan’s team not only need to beat Ireland but also win their remaining Group B encounter against Zimbabwe to harbour any hopes of qualifying for Super 10.
With only one team from the group progressing to the next stage, Ireland and Netherlands have put themselves in contention by winning their first games.
UAE did well as a batting unit against the Dutch but their fielding and bowling was ordinary. They spilled half a dozen catches, which allowed the opposition a free run as they chased 152 in 20 overs.
UAE do not have much recovery time as they run into an in-form Irish side after just a day’s rest. Khan admits the time between matches is too short to make drastic changes but is optimistic of a better show against Ireland.
“It is an all-important game,” he told Sport360° yesterday. “We need to be more disciplined. There’s not much that we can do in a day. Hopefully, we will not repeat the mistakes we committed against the Netherlands.”
The Irish are favourites having won all their past four Twenty20 matches against UAE but Khan is drawing confidence from their last match they played against William Porterfield and co – the World Twenty20 qualifier in Abu Dhabi four months ago – where Ireland were restricted to 138-5 before the UAE were bowled out for 133 in 19.5 overs.
“We really ran them close and lost by five runs,” he recalled. “In Twenty20 cricket you cannot rule out anything."
The 42-year-old captain’s message to his boys is simple: “Just go out and play our natural game. Don’t try anything extraordinary.”
Ireland were taken the distance by Zimbabwe in their first match as they won by three wickets on the last ball of the match. Wiser from that experience, William Porterfield is not leaving anything to chance.
“We know how dangerous UAE can be, especially in sub-continent conditions.
“We have played two games against them in the qualifiers and they were very good games. That is our next test,” he said.
UAE are among the three debutants at the World Twenty20 along with Nepal and Hong Kong. For Khan and his boys, the experience of that first game was exhilarating.
“It was an awesome feeling, a completely different experience playing in front of crowds and the world media in attendance,” he said.
The UAE captain, however, insists the occasion did not get to the players. “We did well in the first part of the game,” he pointed out.
Ireland v UAE
World Twenty20 Group B match at Sylhet
Pitch
The playing surface started out as slow on debut on Monday but became better for batting as the match wore on. Chasing would not be a bad option for the captain who wins the toss.
Weather
It’s expected to be partly sunny and very warm, with thunderstorm predicted in parts of the area during the day. Cloudy skies are forecast for the evening.
Teams
Ireland (from): William Porterfield (C), Alex Cusack, George Dockrell, Ed Joyce, Andy McBrine, Kevin O’Brien, Andrew Poynter, Max Sorensen, Paul Stirling, Stuart Thompson, Gary Wilson (WK), Craig Young, Tim Murtagh, Niall O’Brien (WK), James Shannon.
UAE (from): Khurram Khan (C), Ahmed Raza, Amjad Ali (WK), Amjad Javed, Faizan Asif, Manjula Guruge, Kamran Shazad, Moaaz Qazi, Swapnil Patil (WK), Rohan Mustafa, Rohit Singh, Shaiman Anwar, Sharif Asadullah, Vikrant Shetty, Shadeep Silva.
