Key points
- The UAE are now certain to play in the World Cup Qualifier Play-off in December, after three defeats in Dallas.
- Six of the 15 players in the UAE’s Dallas squad have ILT20 2026 contracts, worth $10,000 to $95,000.
- They play for Dubai Capitals, Desert Vipers, Abu Dhabi Knight Riders and Sharjah Warriorz.
- The ICC has not yet announced the play-off dates or venue. ILT20 Season 5 runs from 21 November to 20 December.
Six UAE players with ILT20 2026 contracts could miss ILT20 games in December. The UAE are now certain to play in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifier Play-off that month, The National reported on Monday 12 October.
Three defeats in Dallas
The UAE played Namibia and the United States at Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas, in Cricket World Cup League Two. Their first match, against Namibia on 3 October, was washed out. The USA then beat them by six wickets on 5 October, chasing the UAE’s 330 for 8. Namibia won by eight wickets on 9 October after bowling the UAE out for 134, and the USA won by five wickets on Sunday 11 October.
“We were always short of runs in the last couple of games,” UAE captain Harpreet Bhatia said after Sunday’s defeat, The National reported.
The UAE are bottom of the eight-team table with 19 points. The top four go straight to the World Cup Qualifier in February, and the bottom four go to the play-off. Oman are fourth with 33 points, so the UAE cannot catch them, even if they win all four of their last matches, against the Netherlands and Oman in the UAE later this month.
The six players with ILT20 contracts
The National reported that six of the 15 players in the Dallas squad have ILT20 deals, worth between $10,000 and $95,000. All six were bought at the Season 5 auction in Dubai on 1 October 2026.
| Player | ILT20 team | Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Aayan Khan |  Dubai Capitals | $95,000 |
| Khuzaima Bin Tanveer |  Desert Vipers | $75,000 |
| Ibrar Ahmad |  Abu Dhabi Knight RidersAbu Dhabi KR | $46,000 |
| Ali Aamer Naseer |  Sharjah Warriorz | $40,000 |
| Muhammad Arfan | Dubai Capitals | $10,000 |
| Tanish Suri | Sharjah Warriorz | $10,000 |
The National also named four more UAE players with ILT20 deals who could come into the reckoning for the play-off: Alishan Sharafu, Haider Ali, Dhruv Parashar and Junaid Siddique. Muhammad Waseem, the most expensive UAE player at the auction, was not in the Dallas squad. Read about his $210,000 deal with MI Emirates.
The December clash
The ICC has not yet announced the dates or the venue of the play-off. ILT20 Season 5 runs from Saturday 21 November to Sunday 20 December. The National reported that the play-off clashes with the ILT20 in December.
More than half of the ILT20 league stage is in December: 17 of the 30 league matches. In December, Dubai Capitals, Abu Dhabi Knight Riders and Sharjah Warriorz each play six of their ten league matches, and Desert Vipers play five. The knockout games are from 16 to 20 December.
The UAE have not named their play-off squad yet. The National reported that the league’s rules let teams sign replacements, but it is not clear whether players called up by the UAE would lose earnings.
What comes next
The play-off has eight teams: the bottom four in League Two and two from each of the two Challenge Leagues, including Italy and Uganda. The UAE’s one-day international status could also be at stake. See every player on our ILT20 2026 squads page and every match on the ILT20 2026 schedule.
Spotted a mistake? Email info@internationaleaguet20.com and we will correct it, noting the change at the top of the article.
