2018 Asia Cup Qualifier
The 2018 Asia Cup Qualifier was a cricket tournament that was held in Malaysia from 29 August to 6 September 2018.[2] The event served as the qualifier for the 2018 Asia Cup.[3][4][5] The top two teams from the group stage met in the final, with the winner progressing to the 2018 Asia Cup.[6] The fixture between the United Arab Emirates and Nepal on 30 August 2018 was a One Day International (ODI) match.[7] It was the first time both sides had played each other in an ODI match, with the UAE going on to win the fixture by 78 runs.[8]
| Dates | 29 August – 6 September 2018 |
|---|---|
| Administrator(s) | Asian Cricket Council |
| Cricket format | One Day International and Limited overs (50–over) |
| Tournament format(s) | Round-robin and final |
| Host(s) |  Malaysia |
| Champions |  Hong Kong (1st title) |
| Participants | 6 |
| Matches played | 16 |
| Player of the series |  Ahmed Raza[1] |
| Most runs | Ashfaq Ahmed (224) |
| Most wickets | Ahmed Raza (16) |
The United Arab Emirates finished top of the group stage with eight points. They were joined in the final by Hong Kong, who finished second with seven points, and a better net run rate than Oman, who also finished with seven points.[9][10] Hong Kong won the final, beating the UAE by two wickets, to qualify for the 2018 Asia Cup.[11][12] Hong Kong's captain, Anshuman Rath, said afterwards that "all the hard work that has gone in this tournament over the last couple of months really has paid off".[13]
Squads
The following teams and squads were selected to take part:[5]
| Hong Kong[14] |
Malaysia[15] |
 Nepal[16] |
 Oman[17] |
 Singapore[18] |
United Arab Emirates[19] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Prior to the tournament, Anshuman Rath replaced Babar Hayat as captain of Hong Kong.[20] Jhathavedh Subramanyan was ruled out of Hong Kong's squad with injury, and was replaced by Aftab Hussain.[21]
Points table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | NR | Pts | NRR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United Arab Emirates |
5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1.289 | Advanced to the final |
| 2 | Hong Kong (Q) |
5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 1.530 | |
| 3 | Oman |
5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 0.583 | |
| 4 | Nepal |
5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | −0.250 | |
| 5 | Malaysia |
5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | −0.995 | |
| 6 | Singapore |
5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | −2.175 |
Fixtures
Round 1
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- Malaysia won the toss and elected to field.
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- Oman won the toss and elected to field.
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- Singapore won the toss and elected to field.
- The match was reduced to 49 overs per side due to rain.
Round 2
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- Hong Kong won the toss and elected to field.
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- Oman won the toss and elected to field.
Round 3
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- Singapore won the toss and elected to bat.
v |
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- Malaysia won the toss and elected to field.
- The match was reduced to 30 overs per side due to rain.
v |
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- United Arab Emirates won the toss and elected to field.
- The match was reduced to 49 overs per side due to rain.
Round 4
v |
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Christopher Carter 14* (21) |
- Hong Kong won the toss and elected to field.
- Rain stopped play during Hong Kong's innings.
v |
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- Malaysia won the toss and elected to bat.
v |
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- Singapore won the toss and elected to bat.
Round 5
v |
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- Oman won the toss and elected to field.
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- Nepal won the toss and elected to bat.
Final
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- Hong Kong won the toss and elected to field.
- Hong Kong were set a revised target of 179 runs from 24 overs due to rain.
References
- "ACC Asia Cup Qualifier Final: Hong Kong Edge UAE in Thrilling Final to Qualify for Asia Cup". Asian Cricket Council. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
- "2018 Asia Cup Qualifier". Asian Cricket Council. Retrieved 27 July 2018.
- "India-Pakistan Asia Cup match on September 19". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 24 July 2018.
- "Bangladesh-Sri Lanka encounter to kick-start 2018 Asia Cup". CricBuzz. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
- "ACC Calendar 2018". Asian Cricket Council. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
- "Six Countries to Compete in 2018 ACC Asia Cup Qualifier". Asian Cricket Council. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
- "Nepal to play ACC Asia Cup 2018 Qualifiers". Cricket Nepal. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
- "Second defeat in row dents Nepal's qualification hopes". The Kathmandu Post. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
- "UAE, Hong Kong to face off for Asia Cup berth". International Cricket Council. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- "Asia Cup Qualifiers 2018: Hong Kong, UAE to clash in final". Cricket Country. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- "Hong Kong hold their nerve to clinch Asia Cup berth". International Cricket Council. Retrieved 6 September 2018.
- "Hong Kong claim famous win against UAE and qualify for the 2018 Asia Cup". Hong Kong Cricket. Archived from the original on 15 October 2018. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
- "'The hard work has paid off' – Anshuman Rath". International Cricket Council. Retrieved 7 September 2018.
- "Hong Kong Squad for the ACC Asia Cup Qualifiers 2018 － 27th August - 8th September 2018". Hong Kong Cricket. Archived from the original on 4 August 2018. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
- "Malaysia put seasoned players forward for ACC Asia Cup Qualifiers 2018". Cricket Malaysia. Archived from the original on 23 August 2018. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
- "Nepal announce squad for Asia Cup Qualifier, fixtures decided". The Himalayan. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
- "Cricket: Maqsood to lead Oman at Asia Cup Qualifiers in Malaysia". Times of Oman. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
- "Singapore Team". Asian Cricket Council. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
- "Emirates Cricket Board officially announces team to represent the UAE in the Asia Cup Qualifiers 2018". Emirates Cricket Board. Retrieved 18 August 2018.
- "Captaincy Change at Asia Cup Qualifiers for Hong Kong". Hong Kong Cricket. Archived from the original on 30 August 2018. Retrieved 30 August 2018.
- "Aftab Hussain replaces Jhatha Subramanyan in Asia Cup Qualifiers squad". Hong Kong Cricket. Retrieved 31 August 2018.
