UAE's Aayan Khan grows in confidence after early success home and away

Not so long ago, the arrival of a side from a Test-playing nation to face the UAE in full international cricket was more or less unheard of.

New Zealand are here this week, to play three T20 internationals against UAE. They are en route to the UK for a late-summer limited overs tour and are without some of their most recognisable stars.

Kane Williamson is still on his way back from injury. Trent Boult will join them in the UK. And Lockie Ferguson is absent after becoming a late recruit for the Hundred in the UK.

Still, though, their tour squad is full of enviable talent, led by Indian Premier League stars like Tim Southee, Mitchell Santner, Jimmy Neesham and Kyle Jamieson.

Facing such a calibre of players might once have been daunting for the UAE players. Now, though, they are getting used to it, given the opportunities that have been afforded to them over the recent past.

Take Aayan Khan. The left-arm spinner is only 17 years old, yet has already played bilateral series against Bangladesh, Afghanistan and West Indies, as well as at a T20 World Cup.

He is growing increasingly used to playing alongside stars, too, as well as against them. Earlier this month he was part of a Montreal Tigers side who won the Global T20 Canada in Toronto.

Chris Lynn, Andre Russell and Carlos Brathwaite were among his teammates, and it was his second T20 winner's medal of the year. Between the GT20 and the DP World International League T20 in the UAE, Aayan’s record is played two, won two.

“Playing in the ILT20 and now GT20 has been so good in terms of meeting very good international players,” Aayan said.

“It has also been great to be part of winning teams in both of the leagues. Going to the GT20 was good for me as it gave me the chance to