Ramadan fuels Hamza Tahir's excellence as Scotland make winning start in Dubai

As the clock ticked past 11pm on Sunday night, Hamza Tahir was still buzzing. No wonder the adrenaline was racing.

Moments earlier, the Glaswegian spin-bowler had clinched victory for Scotland in a classic one-day international against Oman via a stunning catch under the “ring of fire” floodlights at Dubai International Stadium.

He had celebrated by tearing around the outfield. He was met with the imposing presence of his spin partner Mark Watt, who cleaned him out, prompting a euphoric pile on by the rest of their teammates.

For the second time in two days, Tahir had played a key role in victory for Scotland. The previous night, he had been similarly outstanding with the ball, and started off with an extraordinary, one-handed diving caught and bowled, as Scotland beat Papua New Guinea.

This time he had asphyxiated Oman with his left-arm spin, before adding the glorious exclamation mark with the catch that settled a thrilling four-run win.

And all fuelled by a couple of glasses of water. For the first time in his life, Tahir is on tour during the Holy Month. He is fasting on all but the four match days Scotland have during their Cricket World Cup League 2 tri-series.

“On game days I carry on as normal but still try to eat less because when you are fasting your stomach shrinks,” Tahir said. “On game days I have not eaten, I have just had a couple of glasses of water. I’m fasting again tomorrow, and looking forward to it.

“Spiritually, I feel really good. I am praying as much as I can. It’s great because staying in a hotel means you can pray as much as possible. I feel that has a big impact on your life.

“The more you pray, the clearer your mind is. I feel like that has really helped my game the past couple of days.