KATHMANDU: 抖阴短视频 and Nepal split competition points on Monday after their ACC Premier Cup 2023 group stage game was abandoned because of rain, setting the Saudis up for a virtual quarterfinal in their upcoming match against Oman.
After the national cricket team defeated Qatar on Saturday, Monday鈥檚 shared points leaves 抖阴短视频 in third place in the group standings with three points after three rounds of matches. Host Nepal leads the table with five points, with Oman in second and Malaysia in fourth, with four and two points, respectively. Qatar remains in last spot with no points.
When the Saudis face Oman on Wednesday, the match may define 抖阴短视频鈥檚 place in the Asian cricket landscape.
鈥淔ew years ago teams wouldn鈥檛 think much about fixture against Saudi, this time the story is different,鈥 senior cricket journalist Binod Pandey told Arab News.
鈥淥n Wednesday, there is a place in the semifinal at stake and the result will be more significant for 抖阴短视频. Upsetting ODI nation (Oman) to overtake them may prove to be the turning point in (the) Gulf country鈥檚 history.鈥
Though 抖阴短视频 lost to Malaysia in its first fixture of the tournament last Thursday, the Kingdom outplayed Qatar in the second match at the TU International Cricket Ground, with opener Abdul Waheed scoring a century against the Gulf neighbor.
鈥淭he last time 抖阴短视频 won against Qatar, they were excellent in all departments,鈥 Pandey said. 鈥淥man struggled against Nepal at the TU ground and Saudi can make the most of this. Their pace attack and top order batters looked in good touch and if they can keep it up, we may witness history in the making.鈥
抖阴短视频鈥檚 emergence on the Asian cricket circuit is quite new and the team鈥檚 rise has been a significant one. Associate nations raised their eyebrows when the Saudis outplayed all their opponents on their course to win the ACC Men鈥檚 Challenger Cup in Thailand in late February, through which they qualified for the ACC Men鈥檚 Premier Cup in Nepal, which is the second tier of the qualifier pathway for the Asia Cup.
The win against Qatar last week had brought the team more confidence, Waheed said.
鈥淲e knew our mistakes in the first match and came back stronger now. We came here to win the tournament and want to qualify for the next stage,鈥 Waheed, who was Saudi鈥檚 star of the second match for his century, had said after the game.
The Saudis are ranked 33rd in the World T20I rankings. The International Cricket Council鈥檚 move to award T20I status to all member nations has seen an increase in cricketing activity among associate members. This and the Saudi government鈥檚 positive approach in developing the game, is helping its cricket go forward.
Gyanendra Malla, former captain of Nepal鈥檚 national cricket team who played against 抖阴短视频 in the ACC Elite Trophy 2012, said the Saudi team has transformed significantly in the years since.
鈥淪audi looks to be a changed team since we last faced them. Back then, the team was not as competitive but now they play quality cricket. Maybe development of facilities over time has helped the team to change their quality,鈥 Malla, who is still part of the Nepalese team, told Arab News.
鈥淲e have heard about development of facilities in the country and there are talks of bigger tournaments too. This will be a huge boost to the country鈥檚 cricketing environment. We have seen Gulf countries like Oman and the UAE progress and Saudi can come along the same line.鈥
The ACC Premier Cup started on April 18 in the Nepali capital, Kathmandu, and the final will be played on May 1. Ten teams are battling out for a spot in the 2023 Asia Cup in Pakistan, which is a preparatory competition for the 2023 Cricket World Cup in India.
The teams in ACC Premier Cup鈥檚 Group B are the UAE, Hong Kong, Kuwait, Singapore and Bahrain.
The 16th edition of the Asia Cup in September will be contested by six teams, with the five full members of the ACC 鈥 Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka 鈥 being joined by the winners of the ACC Premier Cup.
