Muhammad Waseem says the UAE want to make their mark on the global stage by making it beyond the opening round for the first time when they play at the 2026 T20 World Cup.
The national team secured their place at the tournament in India and Sri Lanka in February after finishing in the top three of the qualifying event in Muscat on Thursday.
They did so by thrashing Japan by eight wickets, with just under eight overs to spare, in their last game of the Super Six phase.
That sent them through to the main event alongside their regular rivals Oman and Nepal.
It will be the fifth time the UAE have featured in one of cricket’s two World Cups. In the 50-over game, they played in 1996 and 2015, while this will be their third appearance in the T20 version after doing so in 2014 and 2022.
In that time, the UAE have won just two matches at all, and never made it beyond the group stage of any of the tournaments.
Waseem, the UAE captain, is hoping to rectify that when they play against the world’s best sides at the 20-team event in February.
“For the past couple of years we have been playing against good teams like Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and in the World Cup against Sri Lanka [in 2022],” Waseem said.
“Now we are preparing ourselves very well, and I hope this time, because we have four or five months [of preparation], Inshallah we will play better cricket, and win games for the team.”
As is typical of him, Waseem starred in the decisive game of a qualifying event for a major tournament in Muscat.
He made a century there when the UAE last qualified for the T20 World Cup, also at the Oman Cricket Academy, and did similar last year as they made it to the Asia Cup.
This time around he did not have enough runs to work with to score a century. But he still ensured the UAE faced no jitters in their pursuit of a mere 116 to beat Japan.
He made 42 from 26 balls to get the chase off to a flyer. Alishan Sharafu, his opening partner, then made 46 in 26 balls as the UAE made light work of the chase.
The bowlers had ensured victory would be scarcely more than a formality. Haider Ali was the player of the match for taking three for 20 from his four overs as Japan were limited to 116-9 from their 20 overs.
Given the nervy finishes to matches in similar events in the past, as well as the fact their form has been patchy, they will have been grateful for the small target to chase.
They had to win the final two matches of the tournament to guarantee qualification of the World Cup, and Waseem was happy with the way they bounced back after losing to Nepal and Oman at the start of the Super Six stage.
“We were saying in the meetings that we have to play our best cricket for the last two games,” Waseem said.
“We were unlucky in the games we played against Oman and Nepal, but after that we talked to each other, saying we were in this situation because of our mistakes.
“I was fully confident about the players, that they could come out from that situation. They have done that, and I am very happy.”
