Abu Dhabi to host T/20, county warm-up games

Abu Dhabi to host T/20, county warm-up games
By Adur Pradeep, KHALEEJ TIMES 20 February 2008

DUBAI — Abu Dhabi is all set to join the Twenty20 bandwagon soon.

The likes of former international cricketers Chris Cairns, Marwan Atapattu and Rashid Latif will be in action in Abu Dhabi next week.

Playing for Lashings XI, they take on the Chairman’s XI at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Monday.

Among others, Lashings XI will have the likes of Alwin Kallicharran, Grant Glower and Chris Harris in their team.

“We plan to have regular meetings with Lashings XI. We would like to conduct it on an annual basis,” Dilawar Mani, CEO of Abu Dhabi Cricket Club, told Khaleej Times.

The city is also set to host five UK counties — Sussex, Essex, Lancashire, Yorkshire and Somerset — from March 12 to 28, he said. “The likes of England’s Andrew Flintoff and Pakistan’s Mushtaq Ahmed are expected to play in the pre-season warm-up matches here.

“The UAE team is also playing against the counties. Out of the twelve matches, Abu Dhabi will host eight games, while Sharjah will have four,” he added.

Regarding the Twenty20 match to be played on Monday, he said, the game, under floodlights, is scheduled to start at 6.30pm. Tickets prices are fixed at Dh20 for East and West mounds; Dh30 for North and South stands.

The chairman’s XI include Saqib Ali, Alawi Shukri, Sajjad Ahmed and Arshad Ali.

“The match has only been made possible by the support provided by Shaikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Chairman of the Club,” Mani said in a statement.

Tickets are available at the Zayed Cricket Stadium office reception from 10 am to 6 pm. The sponsors of the match include Emirates Palace, Etihad Airways, Khaleej Times, Gulf Technical & PDM International.

“The cricket match in Abu Dhabi will be a grand occasion. Playing cricket in the Emirates has always been a dream and we are sure it will be a wonderful experience. The fan-base for Lashings and the international cricket stars in the team, is huge.

“The beautiful stadium of Abu Dhabi, green outfield, impressive seating areas and flood lights will all add colour to this event.

“We would like to thank Shaikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, Omar Al Askari, Dilawar Mani and the ADCC for this opportunity.” David Folb, chairman of Lashings said in a statement.

List of Players: Lashings XI: Alwin Kallicharran, Chris Harris, Adam Hollioake, Philp DeFreitas, Jimmy Adams, Devon Malcolm, Brendon Taylor, Chris Cairns, Chris Silverwood, Grant Flower, Graeme Hick, Rashid Latif, Marwan Attapattu, Ed Giddins

Chairman’s XI: Saqib Ali, Alawi Shukri, Sajjad Ahmed, Arshad Ali, Amjad Javed, Irfan Haider, Khurram Khan, Mohd Iqbal, Prasanth Braggs, Amjad Ali, Fayaz Ahmed, Haroon Iftiqar, Fahad Al Hashimi, Waqas Alwi.