Mohammad Tauqir: "The team is shaping up well"

He took over the captaincy from Khurram Khan but is no stranger to the top job.

“I have led the team in the past and I am the most senior cricketer in the team, so it wasn’t a shock but it’s a good surprise. “This is a great moment for me personally to be leading the UAE at the ICC Cricket World Cup. I am very proud to represent my county and it gives me a sense of pride.”

Tauqir said the team was particularly looking forward to returning to the WACA, the venue for its February 28 clash with India, which it visited during last year’s warm-up tour.

“(Also) the MCG, that’s the ground I will be looking forward to playing at. We’ve got a warm-up game against Australia at the ground,” he said. “We had a tour of Perth and we played couple of matches at the WACA. “It did us a world of good to know the conditions. We have also been training in Dubai at the ICC Academy where the most of the wickets’ soil has been imported from Australia.”

PLAYERS TO WATCH
Mohammad Naveed: The right-arm medium bowler debuted against Malaysia on May 2, 2014, scoring 16 and taking 1-72 with the ball. The opening bowler’s performances in that tournament were enough to see him selected in November’s one-day series against Afghanistan, where he played all four matches before being included in the World Cup squad.

Khurram Khan: Born in Pakistan, Khurram Khan moved to the United Arab Emirates in 1999 to work for Emirates Airlines as a flight purser. The UAE vice-captain, who still combines cricket with his high-flying job, stepped out for his adopted country in the 2001 ICC Trophy in Canada, scoring 243 runs in eight innings to finish with UAE’s highest average. He played a crucial role in helping UAE qualify for their first ICC Cricket World Cup since 1996 in early 2014, finishing the tournament as his team’s top scorer.
The 43-year-old was in brilliant form in the months leading up to the ICC Cricket World Cup, scoring an unbeaten 132 against Afghanistan in late 2014 to become the oldest player to score an ODI hundred. He followed that with 85* in the next match of the series.

Andri Berenger:Talented young wicketkeeper-batsman Andri Berenger was born in the UAE but spent much of his schooling in Colombo, where he represented Sri Lanka in the 2010 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup. He returned to the United Arab Emirates in 2012, and broke into the one-day international team for the November 2014 series against Afghanistan. Berenger played all four matches in that ODI series, scoring a maiden fifty on debut and following it with 66 in the final match of the series.

Mohammad Tauqir:A handy lower-order batsman and off-spin bowler, Mohammad Tauqir has been representing United Arab Emirates since 1996, when he played for his country in the Asian Cricket Council Trophy. The 43-year-old made his one-day international debut against India in 2004, scoring a half-century. His best ODI bowling performance to date came against Sri Lanka in 2008 when Tauqir took 2-47.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES FIXTURES
Thursday, February 19: Zimbabwe v United Arab Emirates, Saxton Oval, Nelson.
Wednesday, February 25: Ireland v United Arab Emirates, the Gabba, Brisbane.
Saturday, February 28: India v United Arab Emirates, WACA, Perth.
Wednesday, March 4: Pakistan v United Arab Emirates, McLean Park, Napier.
Thursday, March 12: South Africa v United Arab Emirates, Wellington Regional Stadium.
Sunday, March 15: West Indies v United Arab Emirates, McLean Park, Napier.