Asia Cup is round the corner and is set to be played from August 27 but the qualifiers are on a roll from August 20 (Saturday) and the first match saw a great contest in which Hong Kong got the better of Singapore by eight runs to take a leap towards the marquee tournament.
Ehsan Khan shone with the ball as he snared 3/20 to help his team clinch the issue in Al Amerat.
Put to bat first, Hong Kong managed only 148/9 in their 20 overs. However, Ehsan and Mohammad Ghazanfar (2/20) combined to ensure the team successfully defended the total.
Chasing 149, Singapore got off to a smashing start as Aritra Dutta took on the Hong Kong bowlers from the word go. He slammed three fours and two sixes before getting run out for 29 off 16 balls. Off-spinner Ehsan kept Hong Kong’s hopes alive as he bowled Rohan Rangarajan for eight.
Rezza Gaznavi chipped in with a quick-fire 17 off 14 balls to keep Singapore ahead in the chase. He was caught behind off Ghazanfar as the chasing side reached 77 for three at the halfway stage of their innings.
Janak Prakash, who impressed with the ball earlier in the day, contributed a crucial 31 off 32 balls. However, he did not stay long enough to ensure victory for Singapore. He was cleaned up by Ghazanfar as Hong Kong fought back into the contest. Prakash’s dismissal left the batting side needing to get 51 off the last six overs.
Off-spinner Kinchit Shah then gave Hong Kong the upper hand, dismissing Manpreet Singh for 12. Avi Dixit and Surendran Chandramohan, however, hit a four and a six off Kinchit in the 17th over to swing the momentum of the game once again.
Ehsan, however, struck some telling blows in the penultimate over, getting rid of both Chandramohan (12) and Dixit (19). The equation for Singapore came down to 15 off the last over with three wickets in hand. The batting side only managed six.
India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan are the 5 confirmed teams that will lock horns with each other. One team from Hong Kong, Kuwait, Singapore, and UAE will capture the sixth spot. A qualifier round will take place ahead of the tournament and the winner will grab the spot in the sixth team.
