Sports Reporter :
The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) Asia Cup will start today between the match of Afghanistan and Hong Kong at Sheikh Jayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The inaugural match of the Asia Cup will start at 8:30pm (Bangladesh Standard Time). Captain of Afghanistan Rashid Khan will lead his squad, while Captain of Hong Kong Yasim Murtaza will lead his squad.
The Asia Cup will be held on T20I format marking the International Cricket Council (ICC) T20 World Cup 2026. A total of eight teams splitting into two groups are taking part in the gala extravaganza, the most prestigious cricket meet of Asia Continent. This is the 17th edition of ACC Asia Cup.
Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Hong Kong are in Group-B, while India, Pakistan, hosts UAE and Oman are in Group-A. Top two teams from each group will get tickets of the ‘Super Four’, the second phase of the tournament.
It is noteworthy that Group-B is death group as Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan have almost same strength to qualify for the ‘Super Four’ stage. On the other hand, India and Pakistan are favourites of Group-A to reach the ‘Super Four’ phase.
Afghanistan want to start their Asia Cup campaign with a winning note, while Hong Kong want to come out from circle of defeat.
Afghanistan never ever clinched the Asia Cup title. They only two times reached the ‘ Super Four’ stages. Minnows Hong Kong never reached the ‘Super Four’ stage.
Captain of Afghanistan Rashid Khan said, ” We want to play best cricket in this edition of Asia Cup. Our first target is to play in the final and our final target is to win the crown. I know, we have ability to play in the final. All my colleagues are conscious about their duty in the field. All of my teammates are eager to perform their best in the stadium.”
Captain of Hong Kong Cricket team Yasim Muratza said, ” We have come hear with a big target to play in this Asia Cup. We want to break our circle of defeat. We want to change our past.”
