Uncapped Umair Ali keen to succeed in UAE colours

Denzil Pinto 13:13 20/06/2015
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  • Dream come true: Umair Ali.

    All-rounder Umair Ali could not hide his delight after being named in the UAE squad for their World Twenty20 qualifiers, saying he never lost hope of playing on the international stage. 

    The 29-year-old was named in the 15-man squad that will travel to Scotland and Ireland on Monday as they attempt to qualify for next year’s World Twenty20 in India.

    Despite being named in the 30-man preliminary World Cup squad in November, Umair did not make the cut for the final 15 which travelled to New Zealand and Australia earlier this year.

    Although it was disappointing to miss out, Umair was determined to come back stronger. Since then, he has continued to put on impressive performances for his domestic club – Alubond Tigers – excelling with the ball and bat.

    In May, he helped Tigers reach the Superstars T20 final, one of the most popular tournaments in the UAE calendar, scoring 40 runs.

    The uncapped Ali acknowledges the national call-up has made this year one to remember.

    “I’m extremely happy because it’s a been a long time for me. I’ve been working very hard and it’s great to make the final 15,” he said.

    “I’ve done a lot of work in improving my bowling and batting and a lot of the success goes to Aaqib Javed and his coaching team.

    Aaqib gave me a lot of tips and advice on different variations and he has always shown faith in what I can do.

    “This is the proudest moment for me in my career. My family were praying for me. It’s a dream come true. I now want to make the most of my opportunity and build a successful international career and represent the UAE in the big games.”

    His first task is to help UAE qualify for the World Twenty20 and with the top six teams advancing to India, he knows it will be difficult.

    “Of course, it will be very difficult but we have a very strong team who can do well,” he said.

    “We will need to stick to our basics, keep improving and put on a good show. If we win one game, the confidence then grows and this will be crucial in the tournament as we all have to be at our best if we want to qualify.”

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