Photo Credit: Emirates Cricket Board
The Emirates Cricket Board has announced a 14-member squad that will compete in the Asian Cricket Council Premier Cup 2023. The tournament will be the precursor to the 50-0ver ACC Asia Cup scheduled to be played later this year. The winner of the 10-team ACC Premier Cup 2023 will qualify for the Asia Cup.
The 10 teams have been divided into two groups consisting five teams each. UAE features in Group B alongside Hong Kong, Kuwait, Singapore and Bahrain. The Mohammad Waseem-led side will play Kuwait in their opening match on Wednesday, 19 April at Kathmandu’s TU Ground.
Meanwhile, one change has been made to the UAE squad that competed in the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers Playoff in Namibia with middle-order batter Basil Hameed replacing Aryansh Sharma. UAE delivered an outstanding performance in the tournament to qualify for the final round of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Qualifiers which will be played in Zimbabwe in June and July this year.
UAE Men’s Captain Mohammad Waseem: “The ACC Premier Cup 2023 is another important tournament for us as we are fully focused on qualifying for this year’s 50-over Asia Cup. The team displayed remarkable tenacity to produce a quality performance in Namibia which has provided us the opportunity of competing for a spot in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023.
“The team has played fantastic cricket of late as a well-knit unit. I have been very impressed by the commitment and passion of our players. I am confident that we will continue to play in the same manner in Nepal for what should be a real competitive tournament with a single qualifying spot available for the Asia Cup.”
Mudassar Nazar will be the head coach of the squad for the ACC Premier Cup 2023.
The 14-man team that will compete in the tournament include: Muhammad Waseem (captain), Aayan Khan, Ansh Tandon, Aryan Lakra, Asif Khan, Basil Hameed, Junaid Siddique, Karthik Meiyappan, Matiullah, Rameez Shahzad, Rohan Mustafa, Sanchit Sharma, Vriitya Aravind and Zahoor Khan.
Aryansh Sharma and Ali Naseer will travel with team to Nepal as reserves.
ACC Premier Cup 2023 in Nepal – UAE matches:
19 April – UAE vs Kuwait
21 April – UAE vs Hong Kong
23 April – UAE vs Singapore
26 April – UAE vs Bahrain
29 April – Semi-finals to be played
30 April – Third position match
1 May – Final
Name of Author: Emirates Cricket Board
The Emirates Cricket Board is the governing body for cricket in the United Arab Emirates. An Associate Member of the International Cricket Council since 1990, it represents the UAE at the ICC and is also a member of the Asian Cricket Council.
