Ahmed Raza admits he was little bit surprised to have been picked but cannot wait to play alongside Shahid Afridi and Chris Lynn at the Global T20 Canada.
Raza was drafted in as Edmonton Royals’ 11th pick alongside UAE international team-mate Shaiman Anwar. Both will be sharing the same dressing room as ex-Pakistan skipper Afridi and blistering T20 batsman Lynn in the inaugural competition which begins June 28.
For Raza, it will be his first franchise-based T20 tournament and the spinner insists it’s a great feeling that his talents have been recognised after taking 25 wickets in 37 T20 matches for the UAE.
“Finally being picked in the inaugural edition is a very good feeling and I’m hoping to do well there,” said the 29-year-old.
“To be honest, it came out as a surprise and got the news that Associate players would be picked. We were very hopeful that some of us UAE players would be getting picked. There’s bit of surprise and expectation so you back yourself to go out there and do well.”
Afridi and Lynn are among the high-profile names in Edmonton Royals’ squad, which also features ex-New Zealand batsman Luke Ronchi.
While Raza is looking forward to rubbing shoulders with the elite stars, he says it’s an honour to count Afridi as one of his team-mates.
“Chris Lynn is a very big name in T20 cricket and Shahid Afridi comes with the whole stardom thing. He really enjoys playing in front of big crowds and he’s one guy who will pull the crowd together and that will be something I will be looking forward to.
“He is a very attacking cricketer and would never let the game go. His aggressiveness was there and still to date, is playing cricket his own way. He has been around for two decades and has a lot of experience.
“There are so many T20 games, just being in the same dressing room, it will be a massive boost for everyone. Even though it’s franchise cricket, we will be carrying the UAE flag high and it will be exciting for everyone.”