ABU DHABI The under-19 UAE team’s preparations for the Asia Cup and World Cup looks to be on track after they managed some impressive performances against mightier teams Pakistan and England in the just concluded Tri-series.
While they lost to Pakistan by just over 26 runs in the opening game, UAE managed to score 258 chasing England’s 300 in the second match.
“I’m really satisfied as a coach,” said coach Aaqib Javed. “It’s important for the boys since it’s been a long process. They have been working hard for the past three months and it’s paying off,” he added.
UAE will play the Under-19 Asia Cup from December 28 to January 4, 2014.
The tournament will feature eight teams with UAE placed in Group A along with India, Pakistan and Nepal. Group B has Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Malaysia.
UAE will play their opening match against India at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on December 28 while they meet Pakistan the following day at the ICC Cricket Academy grounds. The hosts play their final group match against Nepal in Sharjah on December 31.
The top two teams from each group qualify for the semifinals while the final will be played on January 4 at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
“Looking at the way the boys have performed I’m confident they can put a good fight. We are playing India, Pakistan and Nepal but the boys are geared up for the tournament.
“We have a team where all the 11 can bat and are good fielders as well. This is important when they are playing big teams. So I think our boys can put up a good fight and give the much bigger opponents a tough time,” he added.
The training sessions during the past three months have been very intense and Javed was particularly ensured the boys remained in the best of shape.
“Some times the boys used to wonder why we were putting so much load on them during the practice sessions. But after playing the tri-series I think they have realised the importance. They played like a professional team which shows their confidence level.”
With UAE senior team qualifying for the Twenty20 World Cup, Javed said he was happy the way thing were unfolding for UAE cricket but added the job was still not complete. “When I came here I had a vision and I wanted to see UAE play in three World Cups. The Under-19 team earned their berth in the next year World Cup and the senior team put on a great show to qualify for the Twenty20 World Cup.
“We missed out closely on the 2015 qualification by just one point and the boys want to achieve it when they head to New Zealand to play the world qualifiers. It’s all about the hard work the boys put in. We had a plan and had set a clear pathway and I think the boys responded well. I’m very happy the way it’s turned out for the UAE cricket.”
