Shaikh Nahyan felicitates UAE cricket team

Shaikh Nahyan with the UAE cricket team at Al Bateen Palace in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday. — KT photo by Shoaib Anwer

Shaikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Culture, Youth and Community Development and Chairman of the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB), was proud that the UAE National cricket team had qualified for the ICC Twenty20 Cricket World Cup in 2014 as well as the ICC Cricket World Cup in 2015, and hoped that there would be an all-Emirati team one day.

“I would like to thank everybody who has had a hand in making this possible. We wish the UAE cricket team the best in the World Cups,” Shaikh Nahyan, said as he felicitated the team at Al Bateen Palace, late on Tuesday night.

“You can expect continued support for them. We will stand by them and support them because they represent the UAE. And we want them to do the best. We will support them which will allow them to do their best,” he added.

Shaikh Nahyan was also pleased with the role played by UAE coach Aaqib Javed. “He was very instrumental is us qualifying for both the World Cups. He is very professional, committed, dedicated and has gained the respect of the players and the administrators. We back him and support him. He is doing a good job. We thank him for that and appreciate his hard work,” Shaikh Nahyan said.

Shaikh Nahyan said that he would like to see more Emiratis take up cricket and represent the country. “Definitely, we would like to see an Emirati in the team. There are a few of them who play cricket and I am sure we can form a National team very soon,” said Shaikh Nahyan.

“Since, we in the UAE, live in proximity to where cricket is mostly popular, we are interested in promoting this game and encouraging our youth to participate in the game, to take it up and we expect we would be able to form our national team soon, I hope. We appreciate the players who have represented the country, their hard work and their commitment. They have achieved great results and in qualifying for the World Cups, that in itself is a great achievement. I am sure they will do well at the World Cups as well,” he added. “Cricket has gained popularity in the UAE. We have great international stadiums here, lots of cricket activity that takes place here during the year and that is testament to the popularity of the sport.

“We have qualified for the second time now. Qualifying for it wasn’t easy. It doesn’t come out of nothing. It needs dedication, commitment and support from everyone and this is the result of that,” Shaikh Nahyan said. “Cricket does take place in schools. We have many cricket games during the year, international fixtures, international teams play here. We have first-class facilities for cricket. Cricket has gained a lot of popularlity even among the locals. We maintain our support for the game. It is a widely-viewed game in the world,” he added. - james@khaleejtimes.com