Dubai: Oman will be hosting the four-team qualifiers for the Asia Cup qualifiers from August 20 to 24 with UAE meeting Kuwait in the opener on the second day of the event.
Kuwait, Hong Kong, Singapore and UAE will contest the qualifiers with each team playing the other once at Al Ameerat grounds and the winners will have the right to face the five Test-playing nations — Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan — in the Asia Cup, which was moved to UAE from Sri Lanka due to the political situation in the island nation.
The six-team Asia Cup will begin on August 27 to September 11 and will be held in Dubai and Sharjah.
Delighted with ACC decision
“We are delighted by this decision of ACC with co-ordinance with Sri Lanka Cricket. We are indeed grateful on being chosen as hosts to stage the Qualifiers of the Asia Cup 2022. We assure Oman to be at the top of its hospitality and its facilities for all the teams in the Qualifiers. We also offer sincere thanks to ACC and SLC to select Oman as the venue for the Qualifiers of ACC’s marquee event,” Pankaj Khimji, Chairman of Oman Cricket and Vice-President of ACC, said in an ACC statement.
Teams for the qualifiers of the Asia Cup booked their berth contesting in the ACC Western Region 2020 — UAE and Kuwait, hosted by Oman, and ACC Eastern Region 2020 — Singapore and Hong Kong, hosted by Thailand.
India to meet Pakistan
Hosts Sri Lanka will open the Asia Cup against Afghanistan in Dubai on August 27, while India will play Pakistan the following day. The six-team event will be played in Dubai and Sharjah with the final taking place in September 11 in Dubai.
The six-team Asia Cup, last held in 2018 as a 50-over tournament also in UAE, will now be played in the T20 format with three teams in Group A and B. India, Pakistan and qualifier in Group A, while Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan in Group B. Top two teams will qualify for the round robin Super Four stage. In the 2018 final, India defeated Bangladesh by three wickets at the Dubai International Stadium in 2018.
UAE lose to Scotland
Meanwhile, UAE started on the wrong note in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2, qualifiers for the 50-over World Cup, losing their opening clash against hosts Scotland in Aberdeen by a 64-run margin on Wednesday.
UAE left-hander Rohan Mustafa’s battling half-century went in vain as he ran out of partners to remain unbeaten 65.
Chasing a target of 263, UAE lost three quick wickets with medium-pacer Chris Sole doing the damage and recovered through two useful partnerships between Mustafa and CP Rizwan and then Basil Hameed, but that was not enough to overhaul the stiff target. Left-arm spinner Mark Watt finished with a four-wicket haul.
Earlier, veteran Scottish batter Calum MacLeod used all experience to anchor the hosts’ innings with a measured 75 that formed the cornerstone of the innings as the rest batted around him to post a challenging total. UAE pacer Zahoor Khan claimed four wickets.
