Being a cricketing nation only 20 One-Day Internationals old, India’s next opponent in the World Cup is unlikely to pose much of a threat.
The side’s most experienced player has 12 ODI matches under his belt; the captain is 43; and the six bowlers used in the last match have a collective career haul of 40 wickets. Umesh Yadav alone has more (he completed a half-century, incidentally, in the last game).
Nobody expects the United Arab Emirates to make a contest of Saturday’s fixture at the WACA, but to evaluate the side against the defending champion is to do it a great disservice.
To the UAE, the World Cup is not about beating arch-rivals, breaking perceived hexes, or the pressure of winning a first trophy. This is a team of semi-professionals, of happy, honest journeymen sustained only by their love for cricket; a team of bankers, sales representatives, cargo supervisors, a policeman, and a flight purser who trains between transcontinental trips; a team of Pakistanis, Indians, Sri Lankans and native Emiratis (two of them).
This is a group of players for most of whom Monday morning after the World Cup will mean returning to office and a 9 to 5 job.
But this is not to patronise them. Behind their amateur spirit lies a strong work ethic, and a desire to make the most of an incredible chance. That the UAE can fight is certain. Ireland could easily have been defeated and Zimbabwe was pushed all the way.
Shaiman Anwar has stood out with his liberated hitting. The 35-year-old, a teammate of Shoaib Malik’s at first-class level in Sialkot, made a 79-ball-hundred against the Irish and a 37-ball-fifty in the opening game.
Indian-origin players
Swapnil Patil and Krishna Chandran Karate (his last name is derived from his mother’s ancestral home; he copped a fair bit from the Irish, though) are determined to make a mark against the country of their origin.
This is a UAE team vastly different from the rag-tag band led by Sultan Zarawani, who famously went out to face Allan Donald in a floppy hat in Rawalpindi in 1996 and was promptly smacked on the head.
The coach, Aaqib Javed, has spoken of not being overawed and striving for that first World Cup victory. He is aware that his bowlers need to raise their standards in a hurry.
India’s players will perhaps see this as an opportunity to fill their boots. Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, and Ajinkya Rahane have looked good and they will not treat this game any less professionally than the others. Rohit Sharma fell cheaply against both Pakistan and South Africa; he will be eager to have a big score against his name.
India could use the match to make slight changes to the batting order, and give the likes of M.S. Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja more time at the crease. One replacement, though, will necessarily have to be found for Mohammed Shami, who is nursing a ‘mild’ knee injury. Bowlers in form do not like their rhythm interrupted, but Shami will have time to prepare himself for the knock-out stages.
What this does is give India a look at another bowler. If it comes down to a decision between Stuart Binny and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, the Karnataka player, being the better allround option, ought to be fielded. India will be wary of turning things upside down, though.
A drop in intensity will not be ideal ahead of next week’s meeting with the West Indies.
Back in April 1994 in Sharjah, India became the UAE’s first-ever ODI opponent. Since then, the country has played only 19 fixtures with ODI status. The debate about Associate nations at the World Cup will rumble on incessantly, and Saturday’s tie may well turn out to be comically lopsided, but the UAE will battle on, knowing that it deserves a better chance.
The teams (from):
India: M.S. Dhoni (capt.), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, Mohit Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Stuart Binny, Akshar Patel, Bhuvnneshwar Kumar, Ambati Rayadu.
UAE: Mohammad Tauqir (capt.), Khurram Khan, Amjad Ali, Amjad Javed, Andri Berenger, Fahad Alhashmi, Manjula Guruge, Kamran Shazad, Krishna Chandran, Mohammad Naveed, Nasir Aziz, Swapnil Patil, Rohan Mustafa, Saqlain Haider, Shaiman Anwar.
Umpires: Michael Gough and Billy Bowden.
