The UAE will resume their World Cup preparations when they meet Pakistan ‘A’ in the first of five one-dayers, beginning today at the ICC Academy in Dubai.
The 50-over series will be a key test for the UAE players with less than four months until the World Cup. Last month, the UAE returned from their ICC High Performance Programme with two victories from six matches against the Northern Territory in Australia and Papua New Guinea.
Twelve of the players that travelled Down Under are in today’s squad with the major absentee being captain Khurram Khan. The 43-year-old will miss today’s game due to work commitments but will return for Thursday’s match.
UAE coach Aaqib Javed has picked a squad with a blend of youth and experience for each match to help him judge players with an eye on next year’s World Cup.
He said: “This series is about preparing for the World Cup and I wanted to stick with the players who have a good chance of being selected for the showpiece event.
“I really want to give more opportunities to the players who will likely be in the final squad for the World Cup.”
Among the names in today’s squad are right-hand opener Andri Berenger, 23, and all-rounder Krishna Karate, 30. And Javed spoke glowingly of the two players.
He said: “Berenger is a really good player and very talented. He has good vision and is a really good opening batsman; he is a special talent for the UAE.”
Speaking of Karate, he said: “He’s a good middle-order batsman who has played first-class cricket in Kerala. He’s fit, young and very effective with the bat and ball. He can play a big role in the team.”
Saqib Ali, 36, retains his place after proving his fitness and hitting 159 on the Australia tour. And Javed is pleased to have him on board.
He said: “Saqib did really well on the tour and scored a number of runs in Australia. He’s a good player with experience.”
Pleased with the overall balance of the squad, Javed said Pakistan ‘A’ will be a stern test. The team will be led by captain Sohaib Maqsood, who scored 34 in the third ODI against Australia in Abu Dhabi. Maqsod can call on under-19 players Karamat Ali and Sami Aslam, who were part of the Pakistan team that played in the UAE earlier this year.
Javed, who admitted that performances are as important as results, said: “They are a good all-round team and these kind of matches is what we want because playing games against strong opposition will definitely help the players improve on what they need to work on.
“This series will help us see how far we have come in our training sessions since returning from Australia.”
