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SINGAPORE: Nepal, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Oman have sealed their places in the Asian Games, scheduled to be held in Japan from September 24 to October 3.
All four teams booked their spots after featuring in the ongoing seven-team qualifying event in Singapore. The final of the event will be played on 8 June.
After Qatar’s withdrawal, Nepal topped Group A by dominant wins over China and Malaysia. Meanwhile, Malaysia advanced after securing a victory over China.
Nepal, who featured in the T20 World Cup earlier this year, opened its campaign with a commanding 221-run victory over China.
Opener Kushal Bhurtel starred with a blistering 43-ball 129 as Nepal registered multiple 300-plus totals in men’s T20 cricket for the first time in history. They followed it up with another dominant win over Malaysia by 167 runs, with Bhurtel scoring yet another century in their total of 275 for 7.
Hong Kong finished on top of Group B after remaining undefeated, winning all their matches against Bahrain, Singapore, and Oman.
Oman also qualified after defeating Bahrain and Singapore, and finished second despite losing to Hong Kong.
For the unversed, the four teams will join Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. who have automatically qualified for the Asian Games on the basis of ICC full membership. Japan, on the other hand, qualified as host of the tournament.
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