Hong Kong Qualify for 2018 Asia Cup

September 6, 2018 Dwayne Fernandes Cricket Scoops, Sports Scoops 0

It was brilliant stuff at the 2018 Asia Cup Qualifiers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. A fiercely fought tournament saved its best for last, with UAE and Hong Kong clashing in a nail-biting encounter. One team and country will be ecstatic after this win, while the other will be heartbroken, with months of practice and hard work turning out to be fruitless. Well done Hong Kong!

Hong Kong and UAE were clearly the best two teams in the tournament, with Oman doing pretty good as well, but these two deserved to be in the final more than anyone else. Everything boiled down to the final earlier today, with both teams wanting to accomplish just one objective – WIN!

Ultimately, only one team can win and today, it was Hong Kong. They did brilliantly, even after a bad loss in the first game against Malaysia. Not just did they win today, but they qualified from several other Asian countries, to play at the 2018 Asia Cup, in a group with Asian giants India and Pakistan. It was a rain-affected game, and with Hong Kong batting second, they had the advantage, but just had to keep their nerves, which they did. They won the final by 2 wickets and Aizaz Khan was awarded the Man of the Match award for his 5/28 in just 5 overs!

Tanwir Afzal
Tanwir Afzal

Read Scoops was lucky to have a word with Tanwir Afzal, Hong Kong fast bowler, to find out what the mood in the camp was after this historic victory and for how many hours the party will go on tonight. Afzal picked up 1/26 and scored a vital 15(12) in the final. He spoke about the team’s journey through the tournament, saying, “All the boys in the dressing room are very happy after this big win. We lost the first game and everyone was a bit depressed because we came here with big expectations. We’ve beaten these teams before so we believed we should’ve reached the final at least, but that loss to Malaysia was a big let down. However, the team motivated each other and we came back slowly, game by game.”

He further went on to tell us about today’s important game. “We had a good start and we got early UAE wickets. The shorter the game, the better for us, as we would be able to play more aggressively. UAE picked up after the rain-interruption and set a decent target but our batsmen began well too. There were a few ups and downs but we won and now we’re pretty excited to play at the Asia Cup, which is a big stage for us. We’re a young group and we’re all excited. We’re enjoying and we hope to enjoy tonight’s celebrations as well. Thank you.”

Check out that winning moment:

We wish all the players in the Hong Kong cricket team the best of luck for the upcoming Asia Cup, where they will take on the giants of Asia. It’s not going to be an easy tournament for them, but it’s going to be a learning experience and a chance for many players to showcase their talent at the biggest stage. Keep reading ReadScoops.com for more updates on this major tournament.

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About Dwayne Fernandes 2315 Articles
Indian, 28 years old. Avid cricket fan. Business Management Graduate. Twitter and Instagram - @dwayneeeboy