Kerala lad Sharafu hits Axar for six as Sanju watches on in India vs UAE showdown

When Axar Patel came to bowl in the third over of India's Asia Cup opener against the UAE, there was a rare glimpse of two Malayalis in a single frame — Sanju Samson and Alishan Sharafu.

Sanju was behind the wicket, while Sharafu, the Emirati side's aggressive opener, smashed Patel for a six over extra cover. The 22-year-old born in Kerala is a rising star in the UAE, having played for them across various age groups.

The right-hander hit three more boundaries for 22 from 17 before a trademark yorker from Jasprit Bumrah ended his daring innings. Sharafu might watch the replay and hope he had reacted a tad early, but there is no shame in being dismissed by one of the finest in business.

In his brief stay in the middle, Sharafu had whipped Bumrah behind square for a fine boundary. He had hit Hardik Pandya for consecutive fours in the first over. The first one flew over the slip after a thick edge, but the second was well timed; pitched outside off and smashed over backward point.

Sharafu is the only Malayali in the UAE squad. He has roots in Pazhayangadi in the Kannur district, but began his cricket journey in Dubai at 10. Sharafu captained the UAE U-19s and was part of the squad that defeated Bangladesh in a T20 cricket match in Sharjah in May. It was the Emirates cricket team's first victory over a Test-playing nation.

At 17, Sharafu smashed the first century in the UAE's T10 league, when he hit 146 off 42, clubbing 14 sixes and 11 boundaries to break Chris Lynn's T10 record of 91 off 30.