Dubai: Cricket in the UAE is soaring to great heights and credit for this must go to the passionate lovers of the game here. Though players and coaches deserve praise for the UAE team qualifying for three International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cups — Under-19s, Twenty20 and 50-over — there are many unsung heroes who have worked hard to create an environment of excellence here. If not for them, the UAE would have remained like many other Middle East countries, whose cricket is still trying hard to make its presence felt in the international arena.
After Abdul Rehman Bukhatir proved that cricket can blossom in the desert, it was left to the fans to carry it forward. Though investors in UAE’s domestic cricket hardly get the same kind of mileage as Test-playing countries like India can give them, they sponsor tournaments out of sheer love for the game.
There was a time when the winning team got nothing but a trophy, but today almost all tournaments offer cash rewards to teams and outstanding performers. Today a winning team can pocket as much as Dh100,000!
The Kerala Premier League set the trend, with its first edition offering Dh60,000 for the winner. And with Danube too stepping forward with attractive prize money, the offer for a winning team is now Dh100,000 in both these tournaments.
The Superstar Twenty20 tournament organised on behalf of Dubai Cricket Council by a bunch of youngsters gifted a car to the best player of the tournament last year, and this trend seems to have caught on, with Danube also offering a car for the top performer in their next tournament.
There was a time when the entire winning team used to be thrilled if they got a cash reward of Dh2,000, but today the best bowler and batsman can win up to Dh7,500 each.
The sixes tournaments in Sharjah and Dubai, as well as the Kerala Cricket League, also offer attractive prize money.
Any cricket board is able to flourish only if there are people willing to open their purses for the game. Many businessmen do it regularly and these people should be honoured during the cricket council’s annual functions.
The UAE team is made up of players who were hired by cricket-loving companies who grant them leave to play for the country. And the excellent facilities for the game here, which have now gained international acclaim, have been born out of such avid fans of the game. One should not be surprised if soon top players around the world queue up to play in the UAE’s domestic tournaments. UAE’s ardent lovers of the game have always done the impossible!
