Rohan Mustafa omitted from UAE squad for T20 World Cup in Australia

Rohan Mustafa says he hopes for the best for the UAE team and “will pray for them to win” despite his shock omission from the T20 World Cup squad.

The 33-year-old all-rounder received the news via text message on Friday night.

Mustafa is the most capped UAE player in both T20I and One-Day International cricket.

He had hit the winning run when the national team won the qualifying tournament for the T20 World Cup, in Muscat in February.

In the immediate aftermath of that win over Ireland, Mustafa said he was looking forward to making history by becoming the first UAE player to appear in three World Cups.

He played the first time the national team featured in what was then known as the World T20, in Bangladesh in 2014. He also played at the 50-over version in Australia and New Zealand a year later.

However, his dream of a return trip to Australia will not be realised after he was left out of the 15-man squad for the tournament.

Mustafa said he was hurt by being dropped, but wishes his erstwhile teammates success.

“Of course it is going to be sad for me to watch,” Mustafa said.

“It was the dream for me, as it would have meant me becoming the first UAE player to play at three World Cups.

UAE's Chirag Suri takes a catch off Basil Hameed's bowling in the Tri-Nations Series match against Scotland at Mannofield Park, Aberdeen, on August 14, 2022. All pictures courtesy Ian Jacobs/Cricket Scotland

“It will be a sad moment for me, and I feel like they are going to miss me a bit. I felt like I had been doing well in T20Is, and was No 8 [in the ICC all-rounder rankings] before I stopped looking at these things.

“I will miss them, and do believe they will miss me too, but I will definitely sit down and watch their matches and pray for