Former St. Peter’s College and Sri Lanka Youth cricketer Andri Berenger has qualified to represent the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at the forthcoming World Cup in Australia-New Zealand. He will become the only cricketer to represent two countries in two World Cups having played with the Sri Lanka team at the 2010 Under-19 Youth World Cup in New Zealand.

Berenger will open the batting for UAE who are coached by former Pakistan fast bowler Aquib Javad. He has represented the UAE in four ODIs and has an average of 38 with two half centuries.

The UAE team last featured in a competition against the Pakistan A team and lost the series 3-2.  Berenger made a highest score of 77 in the series and was adjudged man of the match in a game the UAE won. Now 23, Berenger showed plenty of promise at St. Peter’s College but for some reason did not make the higher grade after representing Sri Lanka in the Under-19 Youth World Cup.

In 2009 he was the best all-island U-17 player scoring four hundreds and in the following year was adjudged the best wicket-keeper batsman.

Berenger has also bagged a corporate sponsorship from sports equipment marketer Head.

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UAE returns to World Cup after two decades

February 1, 2015, 9:59 pm … The Island 2 February 2015

United Arab Emirates makes a comeback to cricket’s flagship event after a gap of nearly two decades – its last and only appearance was in 1996 – thanks to some strong performances in the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier tournament in 2014.

With the exception of a lone defeat to Scotland in the group stage, it had won all its matches heading into the final, before finishing second-best against the same opponent to take the fourteenth and final spot at ICC Cricket World Cup 2015. UAE spent a good couple of weeks as part of the ICC’s High Performance Programme tour of Australia and New Zealand to get acclimatised to the conditions they’ll face down under. It came out of the tour, where it played six matches, with two wins – by four, and seven wickets, against Northern Territory and Papua New Guinea, respectively.

Mohammad Tauqir will captain the side in the tournament and will be supported closely by vice-captain and experienced former leader Khurram Khan.