The Nepal national cricket team will square off against Hong Kong in their third Group A match of the ongoing ACC Men’s T20I Premier Cup 2024 at the Al Amerat Cricket Ground (Ministry Turf 1) on Monday, April 15.
The Nepal vs Hong Kong ACC Men’s T20I Premier Cup 2024 match will start at 11:30 AM IST.
Led by Rohit Paudel, Nepal will head into the game after beating Qatar by 32 runs in their last match.
Electing to bat first, Nepal rode on Dipendra Singh’s unbeaten 64 off just 21 balls and wicketkeeper-batter Aasif Sheikh’s 41-ball 52 to post 210/7 in their 20 overs.
Meanwhile, Dipendra Singh Airee became the third cricketer to hit six sixes in an over in an international T20 game. The 24-year-old slammed medium-pacer Kamran Khan for six sixes to finish with 64.
Later, Lalit Rajbanshi, Gulsan Jha and Dipendra Singh bagged two wickets each to restrict Qatar to 178/9 in their allotted overs.
Earlier, Nepal started their ACC Men’s T20I Premier Cup 2024 campaign with a comprehensive five-wicket win over Malaysia at the same venue on Friday.
With four points from two matches, Nepal are currently placed on top in Group A standings.
On the other hand, the Hong Kong national cricket team will aim to continue their winning momentum after they beat Qatar by 26 runs in their opening game of the ongoing tournament.
Twin fifties from captain Nizakhat Khan (59) and Babar Hayat (55) powered Hong Kong to 201/7 in their 20 overs after opting to bat first.
Off-spinner Ehsan Khan scalped four wickets for 31 runs to restrict Qatar to 175/8.
With the win, Hong Kong are currently placed second in the Group A standings with two points.
The top two teams from each group will advance to the ACC Men’s T20I Premier Cup 2024 semi-finals. The winner of the ACC Men’s T20I Premier Cup 2024 will qualify for Asia Cup 2025.
Nepal won the inaugural edition of the ACC Men’s Premier Cup after beating United Arab Emirates by seven wickets in the 2023 final.
Nepal vs Hong Kong T20 head-to-head
Nepal hold a superior head-to-head record against Hong Kong in T20 cricket, winning six of the 11 matches that they have played so far. Hong Kong registered four victories while one game ended in no result.
The last time these two sides met, Hong Kong beat Nepal by 73 runs in Mong Kok in March 2024.
Nepal vs Hong Kong ACC Men’s T20I Premier Cup 2024 squads
Nepal: Rohit Paudel (captain), Aarif Sheikh, Kushal Bhurtel, Sundeep Jora, Aasif Sheikh (wicketkeeper), Anil Shah (wicketkeeper), Binod Bhandari (wicketkeeper), Bibek Yadav, Dipendra Singh Airee, Kushal Malla, Sompal Kami, Akash Chandra, Abhinash Bohara, Gulsan Jha, KC Karan, Lalit Rajbanshi, Pratish GC, Sagar Dhakal
Hong Kong: Nizakhat Khan (captain), Adit Gorawara (wicketkeeper), Ashuman Rath, Babar Hayat, Martin Coetzee, Zeeshan Ali (wicketkeeper), Aizaz Khan, Nasrulla Rana, Yasim Murtaza, Ehsan Khan, Ateeq Iqbal, Ayush Shukla, Dhananjay Rao, Raunaq Kapur
Where to watch Nepal vs Hong Kong ACC Men’s T20I Premier Cup 2024 live in India
Live streaming of the Nepal vs Hong Kong ACC Men’s T20I Premier Cup 2024 match will be available on the FanCode app and website in India.
There will be no live telecast of the upcoming T20 match on any TV channel in India.
Photo credit: Alamy
