Crown Prince presented ‘Dubai 11’ jersey by India’s Rohit Sharma (VIDEO)
Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya attend meeting with UAE royal alongside ICC’s Jay Shah
DUBAI/MUMBAI: In a high-profile interaction blending cricket and diplomacy, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of the UAE, met Indian cricket stars during first official visit to the South Asian country.
The surprise meeting in Mumbai took place during the Crown Prince’s historic two-day visit to India for the Dubai-India Business Forum.
Dressed in a black suit, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum held a brief but warm meeting with Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya and ICC Chairman Jay Shah.
Hamdan bin Mohammed meets with Chairman of International Cricket Council, Indian cricket stars#WamNews https://t.co/PucnIl2Jhh pic.twitter.com/mzwuk4KX1F
— WAM English (@WAMNEWS_ENG) April 9, 2025
'Dubai 11'
Dressed in an elegant black suit, His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum was presented with a personalised Team India jersey bearing the name “Dubai” and the number 11 by Champions Trophy-winning captain Rohit Sharma.
The Crown Prince signed the jersey, posed for pictures with the players, and later took to Instagram to share the moment.
His post, written in Hindi, read: “Team India ke saath ek yaadgaar mulaqat”—translating to “a memorable meeting with Team India.” The post featured photos from the meeting and quickly went viral, garnering thousands of likes and comments from fans across both nations.
Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, and Hardik Pandya – all part of the Mumbai Indians squad – took time out of their IPL commitments for the special rendezvous. The team is scheduled to play against Delhi Capitals on 13 April.
Suryakumar, who has scored 199 runs in five matches, also shared a snapshot from the meeting and noted how enjoyable it was to bond with the Crown Prince over their “common favourite topic” – cricket.