KUALA LUMPUR // Vasbert Drakes admitted he is still undecided about whether he will stay on as coach of the UAE national team, after their eight-year reign as ACC Trophy champions was ended by Hong Kong on Sunday. The former West Indies all-rounder was originally hired on a short-term deal to oversee the Asia Cup campaign in Pakistan and their Trophy defence in Kuala Lumpur.
He is still the coach of Barbados, but he has warmed to his role in the Emirates, and previously he hinted he might be keen to stay on to marshal them through the ICC World Cup Qualifier next April. However, he did say his future would be governed by how they performed at the Trophy - the competition for the continent's best non-Test playing nations staged in Malaysia. The UAE had won the previously four editions of the competition, yet they lost that proud record in a three wicket defeat an inspired Hong Kong side in Puchong, a small suburb of Kuala Lumpur, at the weekend.
Drakes said: "I will go back to the UAE, have week's rest and speak to the board and weigh up my options and see where I go from there. "I really enjoy being part of the set-up. "The guys are wonderful. [But] if they want to play at the highest level they need to show more discipline and commitment. "If you can get a group of players who are willing to make sacrifices, in the next two or three years you will see some more positive cricket."
Drakes, a former Test player with the West Indies, has had his eyes opened to the troubles faced by amateur players attempting to compete at international level since starting his stint in Sharjah. "It has been a challenge," he added. "Having players coming from work straight into practice sessions, you have to take that into consideration. You have to have a little more sympathy. "In the future, hopefully we can get a core of players who can gel together before a competition and get them fitter."
The Barbadian coach took over from the former Pakistan bowler Kabir Khan in May. The side he inherited is rich in batting and spin-bowling talent, yet he admits the supply of pace-bowlers is worryingly lean in the Emirates. "Throughout the series we bowled a lot of wides and that put pressure on the bowlers who bowled first and second," he said. "That is an area we really need to tackle. We need to look for the type of bowlers who can do a job up front.
"I thought they had enough match experience [to do better]. Someone like Zahid Shah, as one of the leading seamers in the UAE and having bowled so well at the Asia Cup, the amount of wides and no-balls bowled in this tournament were so disappointing. "We have potential in that department, but the guys have to be more disciplined, they have to really work hard at their fitness." @Email:pradley@thenational.ae
