Dubai-Umaid Asif, who stunned Islamabad United with a deadly four wicket spell in his Pakistan Super League debut match for Peshawar Zalmi, has made his elder brother and UAE batsman Faizan Asif very proud.

Interestingly, Umaid had often flown in his brother many times to play in UAE’s domestic cricket for Ibsons Cricket Club and he had even bagged the best bowler award in the third edition of the SuperStars T20 tournament here. Although extremely talented and consistent in Pakistan’s domestic cricket, the 33-year-old Umaid never got a break. He was the highest wicket-taker in Pakistan’s National T20 tournament in November last year. He got picked for Islamabad as replacement for Hasan Ali, who incurred an ankle injury. Umaid grabbed his first chance with both hands to prove that he is a deadly match winner.

Speaking to Gulf News, Faizan said: “I am so proud of my brother.  He has shown that working hard is the best way to achieve one’s goals and he is an example of not giving up despite the toughest of circumstances.”

Faizan, who is a fine left-handed top order batsman, is one who never gave up his dreams of playing international cricket despite having to leave Pakistan to earn a living and is employed with Emirates Islamic Bank here. “Being a full-time banker it was not easy to play like a professional cricketer while managing a full-time job but my passion towards the game gave me the chance to represent UAE in Twenty20 2015 World Cup squad,” said Faizan who plays for Eurocon Alubond in UAE now.

Umaid too never gave up his studies for cricket and is a Chartered Accountant and works for the State Bank of Pakistan. When Umaid was sought after by journalists to learn more about him, he said: “I came to Lahore [from Sialkot where he was born] and while pursuing my studies for chartered accountancy I played club cricket, too. I feel my performance against Islamabad is the result of working hard and performing well in the ground.”

Faizan described his brother’s traits: “Umaid has been always been very determined and focused from a very early age. He has grown up seeing cricket within our family and started his club cricket in Lahore. He is labelled as a genius in cricket circles due to his intelligence, strong determination and hard work, something I believe can work towards achieving goals. For me, my brother has been a source of motivation and whenever we meet we motivate each other as it has never been as easy journey for us and we had to face lot of hardships.”

So after his deadly spell when Umaid was asked whether he hopes to play for Pakistan one day, he said: “I will take one game at a time and give my best. I will stick to my natural variations in bowling, like I did in the Pakistan National T20 tournament, to pick up wickets.”