It seems that the summer of cricket has come to an end. It started with the 2024 season of the IPL and finished with India winning the 2024 T20 World Cup. The past three months have been a treat for cricket fans in India and across the world.
But these were not the only tournaments that happened in this window, as another international tournament was underway, showcasing some of the best associate teams in the world.
The 2024 ACC Men’s Premier League took place in April and saw 10 teams battle it out for the final spot in the 2025 Asia Cup.
10 of the best associate teams competed in a round-robin knockout-style tournament from April 12–21, 2024, which was played in Oman. These teams made it to this competition based on different measures. While eight made it based on their rankings, the final two—Saudi Arabia and Cambodia—made it after finishing first and second in the 2024 ACC Men’s Challengers Cup.
As stated above, the 2024 ACC Premier Cup was the final step in the 2025 Asia Cup qualification. The winner of this 10-team tournament will qualify for the biggest title in Asian cricket and will join the Asia Cricket Council’s full members—India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan—in the Asia Cup.
But that is not it, as the teams that finished second and third, along with the winner, would qualify for the 2024 ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup and will compete against the ‘A’ teams from the five full-member nations.
Played in the T20 format, fans would be familiar with some of the teams in this competition. While Nepal and Oman also played in the 2024 T20 World Cup, the likes of Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates have previously played in the T20 World Cup.
The teams were divided into two groups of five, with Neal, Hong Kong, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Malaysia being in Group A. Whereas Oman, the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, an d Cambodia are in Group B.
In Group A, the match to watch was between Hong Kong and Saudi Arabia. Despite being one of the stronger teams in this competition, HK ended up losing to Saudi Arabia, which was one of the lowest-ranked teams in this tournament.
Apart from that, it was a standard affair. A strong Nepali side finished this group on top by winning all their games. Meanwhile, Hong Kong managed to finish second and make it to the ACC Premier Cup playoffs on net run rate despite losing against Saudi Arabia.
In Group B, the affairs were a lot more standard, with Oman finishing on top after winning all their games and the UAE finishing second with six points.
2024 ACC Premier Cup Playoffs
With the top two teams from each group making it to the semi-finals, this is where the script changed.
In the first semi-final, Nepal took on the UAE in what should have been a win for the Himalayan nation. But that was not the case. While batting first, Nepal only managed to score 119 in 20 overs on a sticky pitch at the Oman Cricket Academy Ground in Al Amrat. The low score was a result of a top-order collapse for Nepal, and the team was only pulled out of humiliation because of a gritty 50 by Sundeep Jora.
In response, opener Alishan Sharafu gave the UAE a fine start, standing at one end as the backbone of the inning. So even though wickets kept falling at one end, Sharafu stood tall, scored a fifty, and won his team the match.
With one upset in the books, Hong Kong took on Oman in the second semi-final. This game was not another site of an upset, as Oman stopped Hong Kong for 130 and then chased the target down, not looking in trouble at any point in the inning. Aqib Ilyas played a Player of the Match inning of 62 in 51 balls for Oman.
Before the ACC Premier Cup finals, the third-place playoff took place, the winner of which would make it to the Emerging Teams Asia Cup.
As Nepal took on Hong Kong, the Nepalese batted first and finished their 20 overs at 139.8. Dipendea Singh Airee was the highest scorer of the team, scoring 44- off 29.
In response, Hong Kong saw a couple of wickets fall early, but then opener Anshuman Rath took charge, scoring a solid half-century and taking his team to victory. Thus, it is Hong Kong that will play in the emerging Asia Cup.
The UAE and Oman collided in the final of the Premier Cup. The winner of this match would qualify for the 2025 Asia Cup. The UAE batted first and tore apart the Omani bowling lineup. A fantastic opening partnership between Alishan Sharafu and captain Muhammad Waseem was worth 93 runs in just under 10 overs.
The carnage didn’t stop as Waseem kept attacking from one end, scoring the first and only 100 of the tournament. After he was dismissed, Asif Khan kept on attacking and took the team past the 200-run mark, finishing their 20 overs at 204/4.
Oman stood no chance in this match after losing three wickets within three overs. Even though wicketkeeper Pratik Athavale stood firm right till the end, Oman finished their inning at 149/9, losing the game by 55 runs.
This result means that the United Arab Emirates will join India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal in the 2025 Asia Cup, which will be played in Bangladesh. Whereas Oman and Hong Kong, the teams that finished second and third, will join the UAE in the 2024 Emerging Teams Asia Cup.
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