In the second game of their three-game T20I series, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) defeated New Zealand with a stunning seven-wicket victory. According to star Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, this is a huge accomplishment and demonstrates the value of franchise cricket in the Gulf side’s victory over the formidable Blackcaps.
During the game, Aayan Afzal Khan demonstrated a solid effort by getting 3 wickets for 20 runs, while Muhammad Jawadullah also contributed with 2 wickets for 16 runs. These efforts from the UAE team limited New Zealand to a score of 142/8.
In response, skipper Muhammad Waseem demonstrated outstanding leadership by scoring a quick and impactful 55 runs off 29 balls. Alongside him, Asif Khan played a significant role with his 48 runs. This powerful duo guided UAE to successfully chase down the target in just 15.4 overs, resulting in a tied series at 1-1. This result also marked UAE’s first win against the touring New Zealand squad across all international formats.
“UAE beating New Zealand is a big achievement and it’s also showing us what franchisee cricket has succeeded in doing. There is hope for the next generation cricketer coming from countries that aren’t mainstream test nations and that’s good news for the game,” wrote Ashwin on the social media platform ‘X’.
Taking the instance of Rashid Khan, the prominent leg-spinner from Afghanistan, who has established himself as one of the most reliable and consistent players in the cricketing world over the past decade, Ashwin further wrote, “When @rashidkhan_19 broke into the IPL, Afghans weren’t a feared cricketing nation at world cups but now no one can refuse that fact.”
“The future may well see other nations having representations at the IPL and turning the fortunes of the game in their respective countries. Well done UAE #UAEvsNZ.”
