ECB and ICC Academy in new strategic partnership

The International Academy at Dubai Sports City and the Emirates Cricket Board ( ECB) on Tuesday announced a strategic partnership that will play a pivotal role in preparing the UAE squad for next year’s ICC Cricket World Cup ( ICC CWC) in Australia and New Zealand.

The agreement, in the form of a rolling contract, will see the state- of- the- art facility become a hub for the squad’s training. It will also involve the ICC Academy staff, including head of development Mudassar Nazar, the former Pakistan all- rounder, and strength and conditioning expert Peter Kelly, assist in the squad’s preparations for the mega event. Mudassar will work as the squad’s batting coach while Kelly will fill the role of head of sports science.

The UAE side will play matches at the ICC Academy’s ovals against Pakistan A, a New Zealand XI and four ODIs against Afghanistan during the latter part of this year. And that is on topof practice on the ICC Academy’s WACA and Gabba pitches, the surfaces prepared with soil from Australia, ahead of an acclimatisation tour of that country later this month, and an ICC High Performance Programme camp at the ICC Academy in November alongside the three other ICC CWC qualifiers — Afghanistan, Ireland and Scotland. The ICC Academy will also play a role in assisting the ECB, its players and support staff, in an administrative capacity following the UAE’s move into the top tier of Associate cricket.