Landmark score for National Day cricket

Tournament marking silver jubilee receives tons of sponsorship and fan support

It will be a special moment for organisers of the UAE National Day cricket tournament this year as the event marks its silver jubilee on December 2.

Speaking to Gulf News, Tariq Butt, the tournament’s chief organiser and a UAE umpire who has been instrumental in staging the event from its inception, said: “This is one of the oldest tournaments in the UAE, which is meant for expatriates from various backgrounds and nationalities to celebrate the National Day in their adopted home. We are happy that we could stage this event for 25 years without a break.”

Recalling the early days of the tournament, Butt said: “This tournament commenced in the ’ 80s and was first held at the Dubai Cricket Association ground behind Rashid Hospital. This ground is no longer there but we made sure that this tournament is held continuously.”

The tournament has received massive sponsorship support from top companies and cricket lovers over the years.

Strong support

“In the eighties, this tournament was supported by Malek News Agency and in the 90s it was sponsored by I. P. Khaitan of Interface. For the last 12 years, it is being supported by Freddy Sidhwa of Seven Seas and Deepak Arora of City Diamond. The event has been successful due to participation of all cricket lovers in this country,” Butt added.

“The tournament will always be held on UAE National Day like a festival. Many B division teams take part in this one- day tournament which follows a seven- a- side format. The main purpose of the event is basically aimed to unite all nationalities and enjoy a game of cricket,” he said.