Praveen Sharma only had a week of annual leave from his job as a senior manager with Adnoc to work with, so he had to be selective.
He could just about eke out three of the four group matches which his son, Aryansh, would be playing in for the UAE at the T20 World Cup in India. But would that be the absolute most judicious use of his time?
He decided not. So he cut off the final two matches – he will be missing Monday’s game against Afghanistan and Wednesday against South Africa – for a greater purpose.
Instead, he flew to Chennai early, then made the three-and-a-half hour onwards journey to Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh. The specific intention was to visit a temple.
“I stayed in Chennai before the match for two days and went to this temple to pray for the UAE and Aryansh,” Praveen said.
“It is a great pride for me that my son is playing on the international stage. I cannot express in words what a great honour it is.
“God is great, and has rewarded the efforts we make, and the effort Aryansh has put in. I am always thankful for this.”
Praveen could scarcely have asked for more. Once the UAE team had made their own onwards journey from Chennai, after the chastening opening loss to New Zealand, they found form in Delhi.
And the youngest player in the side, playing in what he terms “my hometown” and with all his extended family there to see it, played a starring role.
Aryansh anchored the UAE run chase with 74 not out – his highest T20I score so far – as the national team beat Canada at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.
When he reached his half-century, he kissed the face of his bat and blew it towards where his family were sitting. Father Praveen and mother Neelam could scarcely have been prouder.
“Our relatives from Ghaziabad were there and when everyone was cheering it felt amazing,” Praveen said.
“As a parent, you do have one per cent doubt. You think, ‘Oh, Aryansh has hit this shot, will he accelerate in time, when does he need to stop, when to start?’
“Aryansh looked confident, but as a parent, you worry. Sometimes I felt tearful, when he was scoring runs and cheering happens, if he hit four or he hit six. So, it was a nice moment.”
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UAE's Aryansh Sharma scored a match-winning fifty against Canada in their T20 World Cup clash at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. AFP -
Aryansh Sharma, left, and Sohaib Khan hit sparkling fifties to guide the UAE to victory. AFP -
UAE's Junaid Siddique celebrates taking the wicket of Canada's Saad Bin Zafar. AFP -
Canada's Harsh Thaker after reaching fifty. AFP -
UAE's Junaid Siddique, right, finished with five wickets on Friday. AFP -
UAE's Muhammad Jawadullah celebrates taking the wicket of Canada's Nicholas Kirton. AFP
While watching Aryansh celebrate a half-century in a T20 World Cup in Delhi, in the process of going on to win the match for his side, the memories of a childhood spent besotted with cricket immediately overwhelmed his dad.
“I recalled the days when he had a birthday, or if he had a great knock, and I used to ask him what he wanted,” Praveen said. “He would always say, ‘Papa, I want a new bat.’
“It was always his favourite toy. We don't have too big a dining room or drawing room but still we managed. I used to tell him, ‘Play down, don't break things’.
“These are these were all coming into my mind when he was playing, and it was repeating itself when everyone was cheering.”
While the senior Sharma might have been nervous in the stands during the UAE’s tense run chase against Canada, son Aryansh looked assured out in the middle.
Clearly, Praveen’s children are able to cope with pressure: Aryansh’s older sister Ayushi works as a risk manager for Goldman Sachs in the United States.
Maybe she could have assessed precisely the risk her brother was running when the run-rate was rising against Canada, only for him and Sohaib Khan to see the UAE home.
“Scoring in front of your parents is always a special feeling,” said Aryansh, who juggles cricket with studying commerce at Manipal University in Dubai Academic City.
“Even on my debut against New Zealand where I got 60, my parents were there and [against Canada] my whole family from Ghaziabad was there. Obviously it is good to score runs, looking at the context of the game and the tournament as well.”
Although he is now back in Sharjah ready to face the working week, Praveen will have his mind trained on Delhi, where his son continues to live for real the matches they dreamt of when he was growing up.
“I used to wait for the training to finish to bring him back, and when we got back home his enthusiasm had still not died down,” Praveen said.
“He used to say when I parked the car, ‘Papa, can we go to park and play?’ So I used to take him for another one hour or two hours in the park, and just throw the ball so he could bat.
“Even in summers, we would find the shadow of a tree and then play for another one and a half hours of batting. So, to have this now, this really is a dream come true.”
