The United Arab Emirates national cricket team is the team that represents the United Arab Emirates in international cricket. They are governed by the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB), which became an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) in 1989 and an associate member the following year. Since 2005, the ICC has been headquartered in Dubai. United Arab Emirates Cricket History.
One of the emerging One Day International (ODI) teams, the UAE won the ACC Trophy on four consecutive occasions between 2000 and 2006 and finished as runners-up in the tournament on the other three occasions played in 1996, 1998, and 2008. Won the ICC Trophy in 1994, and played his ODI debut in the same year, followed by the 1996 Cricket World Cup.
World Cup Qualifiers
The other ODIs came in the 2004 and 2008 Asia Cups. In the 2014 World Cup qualifiers, the UAE finished second behind Scotland, qualified for the 2015 World Cup, and gained ODI status until 2018.
The UAE qualified for the group stage of the 2014 ICC World T20. The team has qualified for the 2019 ICC T20 World Cup qualifiers as hosts. Following the demise of the World Cricket League (WCL), the UAE will continue to play in the 2019–22 ICC Cricket World Cup League 2.
Main History
In 1892, cricket was introduced by the British Army to what is now the United Arab Emirates, but was then known as the “Trucial State”. The game spread during World War II, as personnel from the British Royal Air Force and other Commonwealth forces stationed in cities such as Ajman, Al Ain, Dubai, and Sharjah continued their favorite pastime. After the end of the war, the pitches he installed around the Sharjah Air Base were used by British and other foreign nationals.
Residents of Sharjah began playing with residents of Dubai in local derbies held in Dubai. Garden City Al Ain has the oldest cricket council in the entire UAE. After independence in 1971, the popularity of the game declined. However, when South Asians started settling in the country, they brought with them the desire to play cricket. The educated local Arab population in India and Pakistan established clubs in the 1980s and domestic tournaments began.
1994 ICC Trophy
Hoping to build a successful national team in time for the tournament in Kenya, the ECB lured a number of players with first-class experience in India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka to work in the country to meet the residency requirements for representation that can fulfill the United Arab Emirates in the tournament.
With only one local Arab selected in the form of Sultan Zarwani, who captained the team, the UAE won the trophy and thus qualified for the 1996 World Cup. The UAE had beaten Kenya in the final, and the Kenyan players and cricket board were vocal in their anger at the defeat, which they and other observers described as an imported mercenary team.
While the ICC remained relatively silent on the controversy, national team eligibility requirements were tightened for all future ICC-sanctioned tournaments.
1st ODI
The UAE played their first ODI in 1994 when they played against India and Pakistan in the Australia-Asia Cup, which they also hosted. They finished last in the tri-series against Kenya and Holland in the same year and also finished last in the 1995 tournament against the A sides of India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. He returned to ODI cricket in the 1996 World Cup where he faced defeat. All but one match against the Netherlands, which was the first ODI between two associate members of the ICC.
Later in 1996, UAE finished runners-up to Bangladesh in the first ACC Trophy. Strict eligibility rules meant that they were unable to repeat their 1994 success. When they finished tenth in the 1997 ICC Trophy in Malaysia. They were defeated by Bangladesh in the semi-finals of the 1998 ACC Trophy.
ICC Membership
After Bangladesh was promoted to full membership of the ICC, the UAE began to establish itself as a top associate side in Asia. Although they were often compared to top partners in Europe and North America. Failing that, this position remains to this day. They won the ACC Trophy in 2000 and 2002, beating Hong Kong. And Nepal in the respective finals, but finished fifth in the 2001 ICC Trophy in Canada.
The UAE hosted the 2004 ICC Six Nations Challenge and finished fifth on points with four other teams. It has been a busy year for the UAE cricketers as they played their first Intercontinental Cup match against Nepal. Ali Asad took nine wickets in the first innings. They defeated Malaysia later in the tournament but lost to Canada in the semi-finals. And they won the ACC trophy again by defeating Oman in the final.
They returned to ODI cricket with losses to India and Sri Lanka in the first round of the Asia Cup. And finished fourth in the Hong Kong Sixers, beating India and South Africa en route. United Arab Emirates Cricket History.
ICC Intercontinental Cup
They again reached the semi-finals of the ICC Intercontinental Cup in 2005. Also played a series against England A in Sharjah, losing all four matches. The 2005 ICC Trophy in Ireland saw them finish sixth. They defeated Hong Kong in the final of the 2006 ACC Trophy. But began their 2006 ICC Intercontinental Cup campaign with an innings defeat to Namibia. The campaign continued with a draw against Scotland and another innings defeat by Ireland. They finished fourth in the first ACC Twenty20 Cup in 2007.
Their campaign in the 2007–08 ICC Intercontinental Cup was unsuccessful, with only one win in their seven matches against Bermuda. Things improved for them in Division Two of the World Cricket League in Windhoek in 2007. Won the tournament after defeating Oman in the final. United Arab Emirates Cricket History.
UAE National Team
They then played in the 2008 Asia Cup, losing to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in the first round. Their 2008 ACC Trophy Elite began with a shock loss to Saudi Arabia. Their first ACC Trophy defeat since the 1998 semifinals. They lost to Hong Kong in the final, making it four consecutive titles.
The United Arab Emirates hosted and finished as runners-up in the 2009 ACC Twenty20 Cup, losing to Afghanistan in the final. After winning four group matches and defeating Oman in their semi-final.
The 2021 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup was the seventh ICC Men’s T20 World Cup tournament. With matches played from 17 October to 14 November 2021 in the United Arab Emirates and Oman. For more details click here