The United Arab Emirates has named a strong 15-member squad for the all-important World Cup Qualifiers in Zimbabwe starting on June 18. UAE earned its spot in the CWC qualifiers after finishing in the second spot in the qualifiers playoffs in Namibia.
The bottom five teams from the 2020-23 World Cup Super League (excluding World Cup hosts India), the top three teams from the World Cup League 2, and the top two teams from the 2023 ODI World Qualifier Play-off will face off for the two spots in World Cup later this year. The top two sides from this qualifier will be awarded a spot in the World Cup to be held in India in October and November.
Mohammad Waseem was named as the captain of the team for the World Cup Qualifiers, and they have also named experienced Zahoor Khan and Asif Khan in the team, as they will look to qualify for the high octane in India.
Asif Khan played exceptionally well for UAE during the final phase of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 and played a vital role in keeping UAE in the hunt for a direct Qualifier spot until the very last game.
In UAE’s final three games, Asif scored two fifties, both of which came against Nepal. After a quiet start to the series in Nepal, Asif struck an exceptional hundred with a 42-ball 101* that was laced with four boundaries and 11 maximums.
UAE will play against Sri Lanka, Ireland, Scotland, and Oman, and in Group A Netherlands will play against Zimbabwe, USA, Nepal, and West Indies. The top three from each group will then advance to the Super Sixes stage.`
Teams that advance to the Super Six play three further matches against the qualifiers from the other group, with the two results against teams from their group carrying forward from the group stage to make it into the ODI World Cup later this year.
The much-anticipated ICC World Cup 2023 is reportedly set to be held on October 5 to 19 November 2023. The format of the tournament, there will be 45 league games, 2 semifinals, and a final.
UAE Squad: Mohammad Waseem (c), Ethan D’Souza, Ali Naseer, Vriitya Aravind, Rameez Shahzad, Muhammad Jawadullah, Asif Khan, Rohan Mustafa, Aayan Khan, Junaid Siddique, Zahoor Khan, Sanchit Sharma, Aryansh Sharma, Karthik Meiyappan, Basil Hameed.