Rameez Shahzad Explained

Rameez Shahzad (ur|{{Nastaliq|رمیزشہزاد; born 30 November 1987) is a professional cricketer who has represented the United Arab Emirates national cricket team since 2005.^{[1] [2]} He is a right-handed middle-order batsman. He and his father Shehzad Altaf are the first father-son pair to play for the United Arab Emirates.

Personal life

Rameez was born on 30 November 1987 in Lahore, Pakistan. His Pakistani parents had lived in the UAE for five years previously and returned to Sharjah when he was one month old.^[3]

His father Shehzad Altaf was a professional cricket coach and also played international cricket for the UAE in the 1990s.^[4]

Rameez moved to England to attend university and also played for Durham in the Second XI Championship during that time.^[3]

International career

Rameez first represented the UAE at the Under-15 level,^[5] playing in the Under-15 Asia Cup in Dubai in December 2002.^[6] He first represented the senior side in 2005, playing in an ICC Intercontinental Cup match against Ireland in October.^[7] He played for the Under-19 team in the ACC Under-19 Cup in Nepal the following month.

He returned to the senior side to play in the 2006 ACC Trophy in Malaysia and played twice in the 2006 ICC Intercontinental Cup; against Namibia and Scotland. He represented his country in the 2008 ACC Trophy Elite tournament in Kuala Lumpur.

Rameez made his One Day International (ODI) debut against Scotland on 14 August 2016 in the 2015–17 ICC World Cricket League Championship.^[8] He made his Twenty20 International (T20I) debut for the United Arab Emirates against Afghanistan on 14 December 2016.^[9]

In January 2018, he was named in the UAE's squad for the 2018 ICC World Cricket League Division Two tournament.^[10] Following the conclusion of the 2018 Cricket World Cup Qualifier tournament, the International Cricket Council (ICC) named Rameez as the rising star of the United Arab Emirates's squad.^[11]

In August 2018, he was named in the United Arab Emirates' squad for the 2018 Asia Cup Qualifier tournament.^[12] In December 2018, he was named in the United Arab Emirates' team for the 2018 ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup.^[13] Later the same month, he was one of three players to be given an eight-week ban from international cricket for breaching the Emirates Cricket Board's Player's Code of Conduct,^[14] after using Twitter to criticise the facilities in Karachi during the tournament.^[15] In January 2019, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had accepted apologies from all the cricketers involved.^[16] In March 2019, he returned to the UAE's squad following his suspension for their series against the United States.^[17]

In September 2019, he was named in the United Arab Emirates' squad for the 2019 ICC T20 World Cup Qualifier tournament in the UAE.^[18]

After a break of several years, during which time he moved to Europe for his career, Rameez returned to the UAE's squad in June 2023 for its ODI series against the West Indies.^[19]

Franchise career

In June 2019, he was selected to play for the Winnipeg Hawks franchise team in the 2019 Global T20 Canada tournament.^[20]

Notes and References

1. http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/other/content/player/220519.html Rameez Shahzad
2. Web site: From Ahmed Raza to Zahoor Khan - 13 UAE players who would be great cover options during IPL 2020 . The National . 5 August 2020.
3. News: UAE’s Rameez Shahzad offers pointers to England to handle Pakistan spinners. The National. Abu Dhabi. 11 October 2015. Paul. Radley. 4 June 2023.
4. News: UAE face Netherlands as Rameez Shahzad and Bas de Leede dream of playing in World Cup like their fathers. The National. Abu Dhabi. 7 March 2018. Paul. Radley. 4 June 2023.
5. http://www.cricketarchive.co.uk/Archive/Players/60/60188/all_teams.html Teams played for by Rameez Shahzad
6. http://www.cricketarchive.co.uk/Archive/Players/60/60188/Other_matches.html Other matches played by Rameez Shahzad
7. http://www.cricketarchive.co.uk/Archive/Players/60/60188/First-Class_Matches.html First-class matches played by Rameez Shahzad
8. Web site: ICC World Cricket League Championship, 26th Match: Scotland v United Arab Emirates at Edinburgh, Aug 14, 2016 . 14 August 2016 . ESPNcricinfo.
9. Web site: Afghanistan tour of United Arab Emirates, 1st T20I: United Arab Emirates v Afghanistan at ICCA Dubai, Dec 14, 2016 . 14 December 2016 . ESPNcricinfo.
10. Web site: Six teams vying for the final two spots in ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2018 . 29 January 2018 . International Cricket Council.
11. Web site: CWCQ 2018 Report Card: United Arab Emirates . 23 March 2018 . International Cricket Council.
12. Web site: Emirates Cricket Board officially announces team to represent the UAE in the Asia Cup Qualifiers 2018 . Emirates Cricket Board . 18 August 2018.
13. Web site: Emirates Cricket Board announce team that will represent the UAE in Asia Cricket's Emerging Teams Asia Cup 2018 . Emirates Cricket Board . 3 December 2018.
14. Web site: Three UAE players suspended for eight weeks from international cricket . ESPNcricinfo . 19 December 2018.
15. Web site: UAE captain Rohan Mustafa among three players suspended for eight weeks by Emirates Cricket Board . The National . 19 December 2018.
16. Web site: PCB accepts UAE players' apologies . ESPNcricinfo . 10 January 2019.
17. Web site: Mohammed Naveed says UAE have 'four to six captains' as he retains armband for USA series . The National . 13 March 2019.
18. Web site: Emirates Cricket Board announces side to compete in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup Qualifiers 2019 . Emirates Cricket Board . 17 September 2019.
19. News: UAE cricketer Rameez Shahzad reinvents himself after returning from five-year break. Gulf News. 1 June 2023. AKS. Satish. 4 June 2023.
20. Web site: Global T20 draft streamed live . Canada Cricket Online . 20 June 2019.