Hong Kong’s women on verge of making history at ACC T20 Championship, as Asia Cup spot beckons
- Winning their semi-final clash against Malaysia on Friday would earn Kary Chan’s side a place at October’s tournament for the first time
- Hong Kong’s men keep winning too, beating Bermuda by 194 runs in their Challenge League B clash in Uganda on Thursday
Hong Kong’s women play the most important game of their lives on Friday when they face Malaysia with a place in the Asia Cup at stake.
The two sides clash in the second semi-final of the ACC Women’s T20 Championship in Kuala Lumpur, and head coach Ghulam Saqlain said his players were “bursting with confidence”.
Hong Kong have never qualified for the Asia Cup, but head into the game unbeaten in the previous four matches and with their eyes on a greater prize.
Chan ‘incredibly excited’ to be leading Hong Kong’s charge for Asia Cup spot
“We’re looking forward to winning this game, but we are in a position to win this tournament as well,” Saqlain said. “We’re not just looking to qualify for the Asia Cup.”
Calling the match “a great opportunity”, Saqlain said the players were aware that it was “a very important game for Hong Kong women’s cricket”.
“We just had an optional training session this morning, and although it was optional, they all came out,” he said on Thursday. “They are very excited, and they want to win this.
“You can see the enthusiasm among the team, and we are very confident.”
Although unbeaten, Hong Kong have wobbled a couple of times, not least in their previous game against Kuwait on Wednesday when they batted first and were restricted to 90 for eight.
Their response in then bowling their opponents out for 60 showed they were “ready for any situation”, Saqlain said.
The head coach believes much of the game awareness and resolve comes from the experience of playing in several other important tournaments over the past 18 months, especially the Fairbreak Invitational, where the likes of Kary Chan, Mariko Hill, Yasmin Daswani and others played and competed alongside some of the best in the world.
“The quality of these tournaments, it really gave them a boost, I think playing overseas is very important, if we’d just kept training it wouldn’t have helped the players develop their skills,” Saqlain said.
“The ICC qualifier in the UAE, the Fairbreak Invitational, it really tested their skills in a real situation, and I think it has really shown the character, and they can trouble any side at any level.”
While Hong Kong’s women are taking on Malaysia, in a game that starts at 2.15pm, their male counterparts will be facing Jersey in their penultimate game of the Challenge League B tournament in Uganda, where they have yet to lose.
Trent Johnston’s side completed a crushing 194-run win over Bermuda on Thursday to go back to the top of the table.
Babar Hayat’s thumping 135 from 102 balls helped his side reach 313 for nine in their 50 overs, with captain Nizakat Khan (38), Aizaz Khan (34) and Shahid Wasif (33) all adding valuable runs.
Spinners Ehsan Khan and Yasim Murtaza then took seven wickets between them as Bermuda were bowled out for 119 in just 25 overs. Only opener Dominic Sabir (34) and Steven Bremar (24) put up any real resistance.
