Hong Kong beat United Arab Emirates (UAE) by eight wickets to qualify for the Asia Cup 2022 T20 tournament on Wednesday.
Hong Kong chased down a target of 148 to secure its third successive win in the Asia Cup qualifiers held at the Al Amerat Cricket Stadium in Muscat, Oman.
Ahead of the final league match, Hong Kong and UAE were put in a must-win situation after Kuwait’s whirlwind win over Singapore helped it to take the lead on Net Run Rate.
Hong Kong’s disciplined bowling effort after winning the toss then helped it to restrict UAE to 147. Skipper Nizakat Khan and opener Yazim Murtaza then powered the side to a quick start in the chase. The duo recorded Hong Kong’s highest-ever T20I opening partnership (85) before Nizakat fell for 39. The chase then went down to the wire before Hong Kong crossed the line with six balls to spare.
The win booked Hong Kong’s ticket to the UAE where it will feature alongside India and Pakistan in Group A. Its first match will be against India on August 31 in Dubai, followed by Pakistan in Sharjah on September 2.
Ranked 23rd in the ICC T20I rankings, the 2022 edition will mark Hong Kong’s fourth appearance in the Asia Cup after 2004, 2008 and 2018, and the first in the T20I format.
Hong Kong Squad: Yasim Murtaza, Nizakat Khan(c), Babar Hayat, Kinchit Shah, Aizaz Khan, Scott McKechnie(w), Zeeshan Ali, Haroon Arshad, Ehsan Khan, Mohammad Ghazanfar, Ayush Shukla, Wajid Shah, Aftab Hussain, Dhananjay Rao, Mohammad Waheed, Ahan Trivedi, Ateeq Iqbal
Hong Kong’s Asia Cup 2022 Group A schedule: India vs Hong Kong (Dubai, August 31); Pakistan vs Hong Kong (Sharjah, September 2)
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