Veteran batsman Shaiman Anwar has no plans to retire next year, insisting he can carry on playing for the UAE until 2017.
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The 36-year-old opener has been a regular for the UAE national team since making his debut in 2001, scoring more than 3,000 runs in all formats of the game. He has been a key player in the team’s rise on the international stage that saw him play at last year’s World Twenty20 and 2015 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
But he was part of the squad that endured a miserable qualifying World T20 campaign in June as they registered just one win in six games in the United Kingdom.
UAE batsman Shaiman Anwar hopes to feature in Twenty20 league: https://t.co/GrRUi1dCH7 @denz_360 pic.twitter.com/91PVyErWvT
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That failure resulted in coach Aaqib Javed revamping his squads with fresh faces following the retirements of veterans Khurram Khan and Saqib Ali, while skipper Mohammad Tauqir is no longer in contention. But Anwar remains in the international set-up and justified his position with three straight halfcenturies against Hong Kong and Oman respectively last month.
“I hope to carry on playing for the next two years,” said Anwar, who is part of the UAE training camp for their ICC Intercontinental Cup and World Cricket League games against Netherlands next month.
“It depends on the level of my fitness. But I’m doing really well. My body is in great shape and I will continue working hard. I’ve done well over the last couple of months and I feel I can still give a lot even though I’m 36.”
He accepts he has more responsbility to perform with the bat given he’s one of the experienced players and is eager to share his knowledge to the new players.
“The UAE had a tough T20 World Cup qualifying campaign and rightfully, Javed and the selectors made some changes in the best interest of the team,” he said. “I’m grateful that I still have Javed’s faith and I want to help UAE qualify for more ICC tournaments.
“Of course, this is a transitional phase for us and there are some newcomers in the squad. I want to play my part and guide them through. I feel it’s one of my responsibilities to ensure I’m there for them when they need help on the field.
“Some of the players will not know what to expect when playing on the international stage but I, along with the coaching staff, can help them how to deal with pressure and nerves as well as improving their batting techniques.”
He added: “We can’t expect overnight success. It’s important the players are given as much time as possible to adapt because playing international stage is a lot different to the domestic games in the UAE.”
