WION Exclusive: 'Batting at no 5 isn’t easy', says Sikandar Raza as he talks about challenges in ILT20 and Sharjah Warriors’ momentum

There is a certain familiarity to the sight of Sikandar Raza walking in when the game has tilted, wobbling, leaning away from his side. Across leagues and continents, he has become the man, teams turn to when situations slide into the uncomfortable and the improbable. Five matches into Sharjah Warriors’ ILT20 season, with 113 runs and four wickets already, Raza has quietly slipped back into that role, the crisis man, the balancer, the one who absorbs pressure so the team can exhale.

What makes him valuable, though, isn’t a rigid job description but the opposite: the willingness to shift gears at will. “I’m batting at five, pretty much where I’ve spent most of my career,” he said in an exclusive conversation with WION. “But when the situation changes, you change. If it’s 100/3 after 15 overs, that’s one mindset. If it’s 30/3 after five, that’s another. The situation tells you what role you need to play.”

ILT20, with its mix of styles and its impact-player rule, adds another layer of complexity. Raza sees it not as a hurdle but as a space where adaptability is currency. “You work with 14–15 different nationalities here,” he explains. “Understanding people quickly, working hand-in-hand, that’s the beauty of this league.”

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Understanding Sharjah and the rhythm of winning

Sharjah’s pitch, once predictably spin-friendly, has acquired a split personality over recent seasons. Some days it grips and turns; others, it behaves like a flat trampoline with boundaries that mock bowlers. Raza has learned not to trust assumptions. “Sharjah is changing,” he says. “Sometimes it’s spin-friendly, sometimes it’s flat. You have to read the surface well because you cannot fight the conditions. Make your combinations accordingly, hope you’ve read it right, and go from there.”

“Once you start winning, the team graph goes up,” Raza reflects. “You start understanding each other better. We’ve been together for two weeks now, and that culture, helping each other, trusting each other, starts reflecting on the field.” It’s a reminder that teams don’t gel instantly; they develop, session by session, conversation by conversation. And in those moments, senior players become soundboards, stabilisers, sometimes emotional anchors. Raza, though, resists speaking of his role in leadership terms. “I find it difficult to talk about myself,” he smiles. “I try to respect everyone, understand everyone, so that when you need them, they run through a wall for you.”

Working with JP Duminy and backing Tom Abell

A big part of his comfort this season comes from head coach JP Duminy, someone who understands the grind of batting at number five and six. “For the first time, I’m working with a coach who has done the same role,” Raza says. “JP knows what I’m thinking, what I might do. After a win or a loss, I go to him and review my performance because he gets it, being a spinner, a middle-order batter, the whole combination.”

Raza also reserves a warm word for Tom Abell, the understated performer he believes deserves more attention. “Tom is incredibly underrated, a hardworking cricketer, a great leader, someone who understands the game well,” he says. “He hasn’t hogged the limelight yet, but he’s someone everyone should keep an eye on.”

As for his own game, Raza’s preparation has been characteristically broad: batting skills, bowling skills, power hitting, death bowling, fitness, all of it. “Each venue in ILT20 has a different challenge. And fitness isn’t just for ILT20, it’s for every league. It gives you half a chance of being successful.”