Today's Edition
KUUMAR SHYAM (ABU DHABI)
The national cricket team is set to begin its T20 World Cup campaign on Tuesday against New Zealand at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The squad enters the tournament following a period of intense training and some quality build-up over recent months but the main task starts now.
Speaking at the pre-match conference, the UAE captain Muhammad Waseem expressed confidence in his side's readiness for the opening fixture. Speaking on the eve of the match, he said, "Preparation is going very good to be honest; the boys are working very hard for the big stage."
Despite being pitted against a top World Cup title contender, the national team can draw confidence from the fact that they did stun the Kiwis in the one-day format. However, Waseem is mindful of the specific challenges posed by the current environment in India.
Regarding the tactical approach, he said, "Our strategy is very simple, we beat them before in ODI, but this time it's a different venue, different tournament, different ground, and different game also, so we came with another plan right now."
Reflecting on lessons from recent warm-up matches against Italy and Nepal, which they lost, the captain chose to focus on lessons learnt in improving batting longevity and defensive fielding. "From the warm-up games, we learned so many things, especially in batting and fielding. It's a little bit bigger ground, so in the fielding side, we learned so many things about how we can cut the doubles into the singles," Waseem said.
The UAE occupies a place in Group D alongside South Africa, Afghanistan, and Canada. Despite the high level of competition, the captain remains optimistic about the contest. He said, "They [New Zealand] are a good team, they have experience also, but we work ourselves very well, and we prepared ourselves like a champion team, so we will try to play a good cricket against them tomorrow.”
Coach Lalchand Rajput assured on the team's departure to India that "mentally they are prepared for that. The best thing is that you have got to believe in yourself," Rajput noted, addressing the "quantum leap" his players must take onto the global stage.
"Cricket is all about being positive and sticking to the basics. We are trying combinations, and we have to be positive." For his part, Rajput has tried to keep a few players shielded as much as he can, hoping the players turn out to be a trump card. "That is correct; that's the plan," is all he would say to Aletihad, when asked about Simranjeet Singh, a spinner who hails from India and could have a say on a spin-friendly track at the MAC Stadium in Chennai.
Plans can, however, go awry. The word coming out of the camp on Monday evening was that Mohammed Zohaib is being sent back as some kind of disciplinary measure, with no more details available. Considering that Zohaib was to bat at No.3 and Alishan Sharafu, who was told to drop down to No.4 spot for solidity, has not found form in the warm-up games, the UAE will have to show a huge amount of character.
Like Sharafu said before leaving for Indian shores. "It is as much of an opportunity as it is a challenge. On the day, you never know. It is T20 cricket, and a couple of good performances could help us on the winning side."
