ACC Premier Cup: Hong Kong ‘in a great place’ as they name squad for Nepal

The winner of the 10-team tournament will clinch the final spot in September’s Asia Cup

Coach Simon Willis says recent T20 and one-day triumphs on home soil will send players to Kathmandu on a high

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Batsman Nizakat Khan will lead Hong Kong again for the tournament in Nepal. Photo: Yik Yeung-man

Published: 10:11pm, 6 Apr 2023Updated: 11:02pm, 6 Apr 2023

Cricket Hong Kong have named their squad for the ACC Premier Cup, to be held in Nepal this month.

The city’s team will spend 10 days in Sri Lanka in preparation for the competition, before travelling to Kathmandu, where all of the matches take place. They will face Singapore, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Kuwait in Group A.

Previously known as the ACC Asia Cup Qualifiers, the event will see the best associate teams in Asia compete not only to win the tournament but to claim the final spot in the Asia Cup in September. The top three will also qualify for the ACC Emerging Nations Asia Cup, where they will be joined by the full members’ second-string squads.

Hong Kong head coach Simon Willis said his players would head to Nepal on a high after their triumphs on home soil last month in both the T20 quadrangular tournament against Bahrain, Kuwait and Malaysia, and the following one-day tournament against the last two of those sides.

“The team is in a great place following the recent home T20I and 50-over series,” Willis said. “The ACC Premier Cup is an exciting event and we are looking forward to playing some high-quality cricket.”

Aizaz Khan returns to the squad after missing the 50-over series, while Scott McKechnie has been ruled out with a broken finger.

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