The Sharjah cricket stadium, which has witnessed some of the most historic moments in world cricket, recently played host to the Bukhatir League and Sharjah Summer Cup. Through both tournaments, one team has been quietly making ripples.
The Servhub Cricket Club, a team made up largely of blue-collar workers- camp bosses, receptionists, drivers, logistics coordinators — reached the semi-finals of the 50th Bukhatir League and competed in the knockout stages of the Sharjah Summer Cup.
Made up of players from all walks of life and ranging between the ages of 20 and 40, this unlikely team of misfits have been creating a storm on the field.
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The players
The team’s success is built on a remarkable blend of raw talent and hard work. Harsh Desai, the 20-year-old vice-captain, is a former UAE Under-19 international who has played in the ACC U19 Asia Cup and the Emirates D10 tournament. He is also a computer science engineering student at BITS Pilani, Dubai.
Sajid Iqbal, the team’s top run-getter this season, was recently called up to UAE national team camps after scoring a century in domestic cricket. He works at the company’s reception. Ankush Wakode, who plays alongside Harsh, represented India at the Under-19 level. There is also Shabbir Ali Hassan, a left-arm spinner who played first-class cricket back in Pakistan. And Muhammad Anwar, one of the team’s oldest players at 36, still going strong.
“Naseem is new to the UAE,” said Rao Ali Mehmood, the team’s captain and Servhub’s operations manager. “He arrived just three months ago. He’s a left-arm fast bowler from Peshawar. We also have Anas, another fast bowler. Vimal Nath is a left-arm spinner from India. Abhijit is a medium pacer.”
How it started
The story began in 2020. Servhub, a UAE-based workforce solutions company that manages accommodation and facilities for over 14,000 workers across the country, used to organise annual offsite team-building events for its office staff. But when the pandemic hit, they decided to do something different.
“We wanted to bring our ground staff and office staff together,” said Vani Mendon, General Manager at Servhub. “We had a lot of ground staff who help us in the accommodation. We wanted to have that kind of bonding.” The most requested activity was cricket. “Everybody loves cricket, right? Because we are Asians,” she laughed.
What started as a once-a-year event grew into monthly matches, then serious competition. By 2025, the team had picked its best players from within the company and decided to enter the C-division of the Bukhatir League. Within months, they had climbed to A-division — the top tier of UAE club cricket. “Surprisingly, we did quite well,” says Rao.
For many of these men, balancing work and cricket is not easy. Most work long hours in demanding roles. But the company has made it possible. “We have a lot of support,” said Ankush. “If we have a match, we can leave early and the next day we can come a bit late. So, the management supports us.”
The team’s dream journey has not been without heartbreak. In their first A-division tournament, the Ramadan Cup, they reached the final but lost by just three runs. “We surprised ourselves by reaching the final,” Harsh recalled. “We were pretty close to winning it. But unfortunately, we lost by three runs. That was a little heartbreaking.”
A dream
For Vani and Rao, the vision extends beyond trophies. “Our vision is very clear,” Rao said. “We want each one to play for UAE. It’s not just them growing. We are also growing somehow. Every day we get to learn new things because of them.”
Harsh sacrificed his future studies to play. “After my 12th grade, I got into NIT a very reputed college in India,” he said. “But I was on the verge of getting selected in the UAE team. I fought with my parents and told them I would do well here. Till date, I have no regrets.”
The team is now already planning for next season. “Hopefully, if things go well and with the grace of God, we might start having our own ground,” Rao said.
“Every time I see them on the ground, the amount of discipline and focus- it’s something else,” said Vani. “We celebrate each other’s wins. We back each other when someone falls. That’s what makes this more than just a team.”
Source: Khaleej Times