Upcoming World Cup a dream-come-true for Amjad Ali
Senior UAE batsman will turn out against Pakistan, his country of birth
Dubai: UAE’s left-handed opening batsman Amjad Ali, who cracked an unbeaten 116 against his country of birth Pakistan, believes that any dream backed by hard work is achievable. Ali’s ton help UAE score a 20-run victory over Pakistan A in the fifth match of five-match series at the ICC Academy Oval ground last week.
Ali’s rise as a batsman, whom the pick of promising bowlers from his country could not dismiss, is the inspiring tale of a cricketer who refused to give up despite being ignored by selectors as a youngster. Speaking to Gulf News after his century, Amjad said: “The feeling of scoring a century against my country is special. Though I have affection for my country, when I am on the field the success of the country I represent and the team that I play for matters to me most.”
Now 35, Amjad was one of the promising cricketers in Pakistan as an 18-year-old in Lahore. “I scored 364 runs for Lahore East Zone team with three back-to-back centuries. In my Grade One match debut for Lahore, I scored 120 runs against Quetta but was ignored after that. Though it took me 16 years to get a chance to play against my country, I am happy that I could make it count with a century. After being ignored, I played for Lahore Blues in first class cricket under Test star Saleem Elahi and top players like Imran Farhat. It was a team made up of five six to Test stars and I had to often bat at No.8. When I got a job offer from Abu Dhabi International Airport Duty Free, I left Pakistan,” said Amjad, who still carried with him the dream of playing international cricket.
“When I came here in 2004, the UAE was participating in the Asia Cup and that day I set my goal to represent UAE. In the first six months I scored 1758 runs with seven centuries, one double hundred and nine fifties. Wajahat Hussain of United Bank Limited (UBL) invited me to join the bank. He gave me all encouragement and the day I completed four-year- qualification period, he asked me to go for UAE national team selection and I got selected.”
As fate would have it, Ali returned to Lahore as an international cricketer and made his One-Day International debut in 2008 Asia Cup against Bangladesh in his city of birth. “It was a special feeling when I walked out to bat against Bangladesh at Lahore in the Asia Cup. I made my debut in front of my family and all those who taught me the game. That day I told myself that hard work never goes waste.”
Ali now averages 53.40 in One-day Internationals. In the High Performance tour to Australia in September as preparation for the 2015 World Cup, Amjad hit 56 runs against Papua New Guinea and 69 against Northern Territory. “If today I am scoring consistently it is because of our coach Aquib Javed. He made me believe in my skills, shaped me mentally and physically. This is helping me achieve my dream and with support from my employers UBL, I know I can contribute a lot as a cricketer,” said Ali, who is also a fine wicketkeeper.
Ali is now looking forward to March 4 when he will turn out for UAE against Pakistan in a group league match of 2015 World Cup — the day his dream comes true!
