NEWS
Follow UsNew Zealand batter Mark Chapman says he is not surprised with how the United Arab Emirates (UAE) came hard at them and won the second T20 International (T20I) by a comprehensive seven-wicket margin. Chapman, who started off his international career with Hong Kong, believes that the T20 World Cup in Australia proved that associate cricket teams are by no stretch of imagination pushovers.
"I think we've seen associate cricket is going from strength to strength," Chapman said after the game.
"The T20 World Cup in Australia highlighted that with some associate nations turning over some Test nations. "Certainly no surprise to see the way they've played and the confidence they have with some really strong local tournaments here. It's producing some good talent."
Chapman top-scored for the Blackcaps with a 46-ball 63, but barring him, only two players - opener Chad Bowes (21) and James Neesham (21) - managed to go past 20. They were put on the back foot right away by teenager Aayan Khan, who dismissed three of the top four Kiwi batters, eventually finishing with 3 for 20 from his four overs. Mohammad Jawadullah, who came into the side in place of the experienced Junaid Siddique, also chipped in with a couple of scalps.
Speaking of Aayan, UAE captain Muhammad Waseem who set the tone for the chase with a 29-ball 55, said, "He is a future UAE star, And the biggest thing is that he never takes pressure no matter who he is bowling against.
"We are very happy. We played against New Zealand, a Test-playing team and we beat them. Our bowlers did a fantastic job, and then our batsmen were able to finish the match. Hopefully, we will be able to win tomorrow as well."
Drawing comparisons with the series opener, Chapman also opined that New Zealand were in similar situations in both games, but in the first game, they managed to get enough on the board. Moreover, they dropped Waseem on a couple of occasions, too, which did not help their cause.
"I think similar to the first game, we lost wickets throughout and weren't able to establish any partnerships and put some pressure back on the bowling," Chapman said.
"A similar theme [in this second match] where we had to scrap to a score, and it just showed it probably wasn't enough on that wicket."
UAE certainly have some momentum on their side and will hope that it can carry them over the line in the series decider on Sunday (August 20) in Dubai. Waseem has requested the crowd to turn up in numbers and back the team.
"The crowd has been great in the first two matches. We lost the first game, but today we were able to finish the game. The support from the crowd was amazing, and we hope to see more people for our last game," Waseem said.
