Lalchand Rajput, former Indian cricketer, has been named as the head coach of the United Arab Emirates men's team for a tenure spanning three years, stepping into the role previously held by former Pakistan all-rounder Mudassar Nazar. Rajput's inaugural task with the team will be overseeing the ICC Cricket World Cup League 2 tri-series, where they will compete against Scotland and Canada. 

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Lalchand Rajput appointed head coach of UAE men's cricket team

The ICC Cricket World Cup League 2 tri-series is set to take place in the UAE starting from February 28. Following this, a three-match T20I series against Scotland at home is scheduled for the upcoming month. The appointment of the 62-year-old Lalchand Rajput arrives amidst the UAE's recent setback of not qualifying for the T20 World Cup, slated to be held in the West Indies and the USA later this year.

"UAE has emerged as one of the stronger Associate Members in recent years, and the players have put in some good performances in both ODIs and T20Is. The current batch is exceptionally talented, and I look forward to working with them and further harnessing their cricket skills," Lalchand Rajput said in an Emirates Cricket Board release on Wednesday.

"I am confident that the boys, buoyed by their exposure to top-quality cricket and practice facilities here in Dubai, will continue to prosper. UAE cricket has a very bright future and my goal would be to make the team perform more consistently and take them to the next level which I am very confident they are fully capable of," he added.

Lalchand Rajput served as the manager of the Indian team during their victorious campaign in the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007. Additionally, he coached Afghanistan from 2016 to 2017, a period during which the ICC conferred Test status upon the nation and they even managed to beat the West Indies in an ODI match.

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His most recent coaching assignment was with Zimbabwe, spanning from 2018 to 2022. During this tenure, he played a pivotal role in guiding the team to qualify for the 2022 T20 World Cup held in Australia, where the Chevrons advanced to the Super-12 stage despite coming into the tournament as underdogs.

(With PTI inputs)