Shastri hails Dubai’s ‘unreal’ transformation as he fronts new real estate project

Ravi Shastri, the former India cricket coach and captain, has praised Dubai’s rapid development as ‘unreal’ while taking on the role of brand ambassador for a real estate tokenisation partnership. The 64-year-old, who first visited the UAE in 1981 to play an exhibition match, was speaking to Khaleej Times during a visit to Dubai to launch the collaboration between TheBlock. and CENTURY 21 UAE & India.

From sand to skyscrapers

Shastri recalled arriving in Dubai when a narrow, sandy road linked Sharjah with what is now the metropolis. ‘Back then, Sheikh Zayed Road didn’t exist as we know it today. You could go perhaps 100 yards along the road, and that would be the end of Dubai,’ he said. Most of the city was limited to Bur Dubai, with desert stretching all the way to Sharjah. He described the change since then as ‘unreal’, attributing it to the vision of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. ‘He recognised early that it could become a financial hub,’ Shastri said. ‘Dubai was far more proactive than any other state in the Middle East.’

Despite recent regional instability, Shastri expressed confidence in the emirate’s resilience. ‘If any place recovers, it will be Dubai, quicker than any other place,’ he said.

Sporting capital and cricket’s evolution

Shastri called Dubai the ‘sporting capital of the South Asia and Middle East region’, pointing to its ability to host golf, cricket, tennis and Formula One in Abu Dhabi. ‘From here, I can go to Auckland, South Africa, any part of India,’ he said. The concentration of expatriates, including many Indians, makes it ‘a place like no other’.

Drawing parallels between Dubai’s growth and cricket’s development, Shastri said the Indian Premier League (IPL) was crucial in preventing the Twenty20 format from stagnating. ‘If the IPL hadn’t come along, T20 cricket wouldn’t be what it is today,’ he stated. He likened the evolution of Dubai’s property market, now moving into tokenisation, to cricket’s embrace of new formats. ‘There’s always something happening here. Dubai probably has the best cross-section of society in the world.’

Shastri also praised Dubai’s golf courses, noting that ‘if they put their hand into something, there are no shortcuts’ and that the emirate insists on ‘the best, or they don’t do it’. He said five or six top-of-the-line courses have been built.

Coaching India and the challenge of winning

Reflecting on his seven-year tenure as India’s head coach, Shastri described the role as one of the most demanding in world cricket. ‘Cricket in India is like football in Brazil. There’s a gun pointing at you every day. No war, no COVID can stop you. You have to win,’ he said. He contrasted coaching with playing and broadcasting: as a player, you hold the bat or ball; as a commentator, the microphone. ‘As a coach, once the players go on the ground, I can only twiddle my thumbs.’ He called the job ‘thankless at times’ but said victory makes it ‘the most rewarding’.

When asked about fast bowler Mohammed Shami being repeatedly overlooked by selectors, Shastri said it was ‘sad’ and that Shami ‘should have been in the side, simple’. He ranked Shami among the top three or four fast bowlers India has ever produced.

A private cricket museum in Dubai

Shastri also spoke about the cricket museum in Dubai built by Indian businessman Shyam Bhatia, whom he has known since his first visit. ‘He is a cricket tragic,’ Shastri said. ‘What he has done is unbelievable. It takes that kind of commitment, passion, hunger and patience to keep chasing memorabilia.’ He noted that visiting the museum ‘gives us goosebumps’ because the collection is so rich in history and stories. The museum has been visited by cricket legends including Viv Richards, Sunil Gavaskar and Imran Khan.