UAE's Raza dreaming of Kohli scalp in Asia Cup

Denzil Pinto 09:23 24/02/2016
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  • Ahmed Raza is keen to play against Asian giants India Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

    UAE’s Ahmed Raza is dreaming of claiming the prized wicket of Virat Kohli at the Asia Cup after missing out on last year’s World Cup Down Under.

    The 27-year-old left-arm spinner took one scalp in his team’s comfortable 71-run victory over Oman in Dhaka on Monday as the UAE built on their triumphs over Afghanistan and Hong Kong to seal the lone berth in Asia’s elite tournament.

    Their reward is matches against the continent’s best. They open their campaign against Sri Lanka tomorrow before facing hosts Bangladesh, Pakistan and India in Mirpur over the next five days.

    It will be the second time in a year the UAE will play against the big guns, having lost to India and Pakistan at the 2015 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

    But for Raza, it will be his first opportunity after being overlooked in coach Aaqib Javed’s 15-man squad last year despite being involved in the 2014 qualifying campaign.

    He is relishing the chance of facing the likes of MS Dhoni, Shahid Afridi and Lasith Malinga but has his eyes firmly on Kohli, when the UAE meet India next Thursday.

    “He’s (Kohli) the big gun,” said Raza. “I’m looking forward to bowling to Virat Kohli.

    “He’s in such great form and is a fantastic cricketer. He’s a really good talent and one of the best players around. It would be great to bowl to him but would be even better for me to get him out.

    “It’s going to be a good feeling coming up against those big teams who have so many big-name players and I and my team-mates are looking forward to this opportunity.”

    While he admits it will be his biggest tournament since making his international debut in 1997 against Scotland in Sharjah, Raza will treat the encounters against the heavyweights as “the same like any other game”.

    “To be honest, it’s just another game of cricket,” he said.

    “Yes, it will be a great feeling for me to play against the big boys , but I’ve played more than 100 games for the UAE. The matches will be the same as any other I play in.

    “I’m really enjoying myself here and very happy with the way I’ve been bowling.

    “The captain (Amjad Javed) backs me and puts me in the right position when we are fielding. I don’t want to be fazed that I’m playing against a big team.

    He added: “The mood in the camp is really good. We can take a lot from these three games we’ve played against Afghanistan, Oman and Hong Kong.

    “The team bonding is strong and we are all playing for each other. We respect each other’s performances.”

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