Masood Gurbaz said it would be an honour to face his brother Rahmanullah in international cricket, after declaring his allegiance to the UAE.
The brothers both live in Ajman. Rahmanullah has carved out a fine career with Afghanistan, as well as playing in all the leading franchise leagues around the world.
His younger sibling had hoped to follow him into the Afghanistan side. However, after growing frustrated at a lack of progress towards that goal, he has opted to switch to the country where he now lives.
Masood has been resident in the UAE for more than the three years required by the ICC to be eligible to represent an adopted country.
However, it is unclear when he will qualify to represent the national team because of time spent out of the country, chiefly playing cricket in Afghanistan. Last month, for example, he played in a T20 tournament in Kabul.
He stated his intention to play for the UAE, though, by signing up to be considered to play in the DP World International League T20 as a local player.
Masood was one of the first picks in the draft for the ongoing ILT20 Development Tournament. He showed what Abu Dhabi Knight Riders saw in him as he made 74 off 44 balls in the match against Gulf Giants on Wednesday evening.
The 102 players in the development event are competing for deals in Season 5 of the ILT20, which starts in November.
All 24 contracts for UAE players will be decided via the auction, which will take place on October 1 in Dubai.
Masood said he is now focused on representing the UAE, and hopes he gets the chance to one day face the country of his birth in international competition.
“It would be an honour to play against my brother,” Masood said.
“I would have loved to have represented Afghanistan, the country of my birth, with him. But fate has [decided otherwise].
“I would love to play for UAE against Afghanistan, and showcase the talent that I could not portray there because I didn’t get the chance.
“It would be a great feeling, even if we were on opposing sides. Growing up, brothers are very competitive with each other, and we would like to show that on the field as well.”
Afghan and UAE cricket have been closely intertwined since the former started its remarkable ascent up the international game’s standings.
The Afghan national team has staged the majority of its home matches in Sharjah and Abu Dhabi.
Several stars of the Afghan side, such as Rahmanullah, Rashid Khan, and Mohammed Nabi are residents of the UAE.
Hassan Khan Eisakhil, the son of Ajman-resident Nabi, played in the early seasons of the ILT20 development event, suggesting he was targeting a future with the UAE team.
However, he has been absent since, as his aim is now to represent Afghanistan – alongside his father – instead.
Masood, by contrast, said he is focused on building a future with the UAE.
“The reason I have moved is because there were not enough chances for me there,” Masood said.
“Cricket has grown massively [in Afghanistan] over the years, while here it is still developing, but the facilities here are better.
“I have been living here for over three years, on and off. I enjoy it more here so that is why I am trying to build a future here.”
Masood acknowledges the UAE do not have quite as many opportunities available to them as Afghanistan just yet.
Afghanistan are a full Test nation, and have matches in the longest format scheduled to be played in the UAE later this year.
But he appreciates the opportunities for players to feature in competitive franchise cricket here, and wants to be part of the development of the national team.
“In terms of the standard of cricket that Afghanistan is playing at world level, there is a huge difference with comparison to UAE,” Masood said.
“But I was not getting enough chances to play there, to grow there as a player, and to represent Afghanistan.
“I've been living here, and playing here on and off, so it's easier for me to make that transition. Also, there are two homegrown leagues: Abu Dhabi T10 and ILT20.
“That gives me a chance to play competitive cricket here. If not, if I'm missing out on domestic cricket. It means I'm getting competitive cricket while hopefully making leaps towards playing for UAE.
“And UAE cricket itself is growing. There have been new players inducted; new players are coming in.
“In the next few years, just like Afghanistan cricket has grown, I see UAE taking the same path very soon.”
