Nepal, Hong Kong seal ICC World T20 Qualifier berths

Nepal captain Paras Khadka led from the front as his side beat Singapore by a massive 121 runs in the ACC Twenty20 Cup on sixth day of the tournament on Sunday.

The win ensured that Nepal finished second on the points table in Group A and thereby qualified along side Hong Kong to the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier, to be held later this year in UAE.

UAE and Afghanistan also posted wins in the Group B to finish as the top two teams in their pool. UAE and Afghanistan have already qualified for the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier.

The tournament now enters the semi-final stage on Tuesday, 2 April, with UAE playing Nepal and Hong Kong taking on Afghanistan.

Earlier, Khadka scored 44 as Nepal posted 210 for five in its 20 overs. In its reply, Singapore was shot out for just 89 in 15.1 overs.

In the other Group A match, Malaysia registered a comprehensive eight-wickets win over Maldives. Batting first, Maldives was bowled out for a mere 85 in 19.4 overs.

Afghanistan on its part registered a four wicket win over Kuwait. Batting first Kuwait was bowled out for 133 in 19.2 overs and in response Afghanistan chased down the target in 19.1 overs to end at 136 for six.

UAE posted an impressive 226 for five in its 20 overs thanks to player of match Abdul Shakoor's 84. Then in its reponse, Bahrain was restricted to 112 for eight in its 20 overs.