Captain Anshuman Rath returns to lead Hong Kong at the ACC Emerging Nations Cup, a round robin tournament, that’s being jointly hosted by Sri Lanka and Pakistan from 6-15 December.
Rath, who missed the recent South China Cup defeat to Papua New Guinea, returns with Hong Kong drawn in Group B alongside Pakistan, Bangladesh and UAE. Group B will be played in Pakistan. India, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Oman are in Group A with their matches being played in Sri Lanka.
Looking ahead to the tournament Hong Kong coach Simon Cook said “The recent tour to PNG and return series in Hong Kong has been really good for Hong Kong Cricket as a whole. We have seen players like Waqas Khan and Ghazanfer Mohammad really take steps forward and start to own their place in the side which starts to strengthen the playing squad. There is now fierce competition for places within the starting 11.”
“The Emerging Nations tournament is another great chance to learn and bench mark ourselves as a team and as individuals which is critically important for us with the World Cricket League Division 2 tournament coming up in April next year,” continued Cook.
Chairman of Selectors Tabarak Dar added “The Tournament will provide Hong Kong some great opportunities to play against some quality teams.”
The top 2 in each group progress to the semi-finals and finals to be played in Sri Lanka. Hong Kong, Oman and UAE will field national sides while the ‘test nations’ will be fielding U-23 sides, with 4 over-age players permitted per team.
Group A: Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, India, Oman
Group B: Pakistan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong, United Arab Emirates
ACC Emerging Nations Cup
| Thu 6-Dec | Pakistan vs Hong Kong at NSK, Karachi Bangladesh vs UAE at SG, Karachi |
| Fri 7-Dec | Sri Lanka vs Oman at RPICS, Colombo India vs Afghanistan at CCC, Colombo Pakistan vs UAE at NSK, Karachi Bangladesh vs Hong Kong at SG, Karachi |
| Sat 8-Dec | Sri Lanka vs Afghanistan at CCC, Colombo India vs Oman at RPICS, Colombo |
| Sun 9-Dec | Pakistan vs Bangladesh at NSK, Karachi UAE vs Hong Kong at SG, Karachi |
| Mon 10-Dec | Sri Lanka vs India at RPICS, Colombo Afghanistan vs Oman at CCC, Colombo |
| Tue 11-Dec | Rest Day |
| Wed 12-Dec | Rest Day |
| Thu 13-Dec | SF1: B1 v A2 at RPICS, Colombo SF2: A1 v B2 at CCC, Colombo |
| Fri 14-Dec | Rest Day |
| Sat 15-Dec | FINAL: SF1 winner v SF2 winner at RPICS, Colombo |
Hong Kong Squad
Anshuman Rath (Captain) Hong Kong Cricket Club
Aizaz Khan (Vice Captain) Kowloon Cricket Club
Nizakat Khan – Hong Kong Cricket Club
Raag Kapur – Hong Kong Cricket Club
Kinchit Shah – Hong Kong Cricket Club
Babar Hayat – Pakistan Association Cricket Club
Waqas Khan- Diasqua Little Sai Wan Cricket Club
Ehsan Nawaz – Pakistan Association Cricket Club
Ehsan Khan – Diasqua Little Sai Wan Cricket Club
Ghazanfer Mohammad – Diasqua Little Sai Wan Cricket Club
Tanwir Afzal – Pakistan Association Cricket Club
Tanveer Ahmed – Hong Kong Cricket Club
Hassan Mohammad – Diasqua Little Sai Wan Cricket Club
Shahid Wasif – Diasqua Little Sai Wan Cricket Club
Haroon Arshad – Diasqua Little Sai Wan Cricket Club
Reserves:
Nasrullah Rana – Pakistan Association Cricket Club
Aftab Hussain – Diasqua Little Sai Wan Cricket Club
Hamed Khan – Pakistan Association Cricket Club
Additional reporting and images: Cricket HK, ACC