When the UAE were able to fast-track players into international cricket via naturalisation for the first time earlier this year, the credentials of almost all of the recruits were obvious to see.
Harpreet Bhatia had played multiple seasons of Indian Premier League cricket, during which time he counted the likes of Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers among his teammates. Just seven months on from him last playing Indian domestic cricket, he is now the UAE captain.
Akshdeep Nath had been vice-captain of an India side who had won the Under 19 World Cup in 2012. Ajay Kumar and Khuzaima Tanveer had each excelled in the DP World International League T20 while still aspiring UAE players.
The duo of fast-bowlers – who are currently injured - had what might otherwise have been a three-year wait for international honours speeded up when they became the happy recipients of UAE passports.
The other player in that initial cohort, by contrast, had barely any entries on his CV. Certainly, none as glowing as the rest.
His biography on cricket’s trusted stats sites was completely bare, and he only earned his first start in the game after a chance conversation with a commentator in Oman.
He also came into a position in which the UAE are already unusually well stocked. It has been middle-order batting and fast-bowling stocks that UAE have been craving to fill.
Adeeb Usmani is a wicketkeeper-batter, a position which has enviable competition between the likes of Aryansh Sharma, Vriitya Aravind, Tanish Suri, Rahul Chopra and Syed Haider.
And yet Usmani made the best impression of any of the recruits – bar Kumar – when they were handed debuts en masse in Nepal earlier this year.
He made half-centuries in two of his first four one-day internationals, and it was clear he was intent on making an impression.
There was a reason for that. For well over a decade he had been trying to catch a break in cricket, first in his native India, then in Oman.
Usmani was once a peer of Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan, Sarfaraz Khan and Yashasvi Jaiswal trying to make the cut in Indian age-group cricket.
While they have all gone on to international honours and IPL stardom, Usmani’s career stalled and drifted.
“I didn't really have a clear-cut plan; I was taking each day as it comes,” Usmani said.
“All those players were all more or less of the same level at that stage. It was just about people who capitalised on the opportunity and were able to make an impact when their chance came.”
As his frustrations at home grew, he accepted an invitation from an Oman national team player to come and try the cricket scene in Muscat.
While playing there, he caught the eye of Mudassir Ali, a Dubai-based cricket aficionado who was in Muscat commentating on domestic cricket.
Mudassir has an eye for talent; he had been instrumental in first bringing Muhammad Waseem, the UAE’s T20 captain, to the country to play domestic cricket.
“I could sense he was frustrated because things were not working out for him in Oman despite all his efforts,” Mudassir said of his first meeting with Usmani, having presented him with a player of the match award.
“I told him that if he was interested in coming to UAE, I would be happy to help. He grabbed his opportunity. I am happy I could play a small part in helping him take the next step. He has had ups and downs throughout his career.
“Now it is wonderful to see how far he has come, and I could not be happier. The dedication he shows towards the game is impeccable.”
Usmani took up the invitation at the start of 2024. In his first major tournament in the UAE, he scored two centuries and a 90, and he was on the radar of the national team from then on.
“When I moved to Oman in 2021, I did have a feeling of regret,” Usmani said. “I had wanted to represent India. I tried Oman for a few months, went back to India, then thought maybe returning to Oman was advisable, and that chapter was behind me.
“Now, five years down the line, I am very happy to be representing the UAE. I have had a taste of international cricket, I have got some recognition, and I am hoping to seize this opportunity and make a real career out of this.”
While he was largely unknown when he debuted in Nepal, he did have one significant group of people cheering him on.
“My entire family was really happy,” he said. “Some of them were crying in happiness and joy. “I was in the nets at the ICC Academy when I first heard I was going to represent the UAE. It gave me immense pride and joy.
“It has been a 16- or 17-year journey which has finally come to fruition. I’m really happy to be rubbing shoulders with the best players in the UAE, and testing myself in international cricket.
“Since I started out in Azamgarh [in Uttar Pradesh in India], just to be in the reckoning and get opportunities in ICC events, or maybe the Asia Cup, the ILT20, it’s absolutely out of this world.
“I’m from a very small town. Coming out of there, getting the recognition, and realising my dream of international cricket makes me very happy. I want to keep doing it for a long time.”
The UAE will face Scotland and Canada in a Cricket World Cup tri-series in Dundee, starting on Monday, August 3.
