Tony Munro

A new country will have its name added to the list of ACC Trophy Elite winners when Afghanistan plays Nepal in the final on Friday.

Afghanistan comfortably beat defending champions Hong Kong by five wickets in one semi-final while Nepal held off a brave chase by Malaysia to win by eight runs in the other.

Mohammad Nabi maintained his reputation as Afghanistan's best player to earn the Man-of-the-Match award taking 3 for 35 and then contributing 35 not out in another good all-round performance.

Nabi ended the innings of Hong Kong's top scorer, Hussein Butt (63) to help restrict Hong Kong to 205 all-out in 48.1 overs. Butt had smashed three sixes and four fours in his 113-ball innings. Butt's removal at 152 for 5 in the 40th over stymied his team's momentum which was further slowed when Nabi dismissed Moner Ahmed (18 off 17 including a four and a six).

Afghanistan began their chase of 206 in rollicking fashion scoring at six runs an over, although were precariously placed when captain Nowroz Mangal was bowled by Moner Ahmed for 1. The Afghans were 4 for 89 after 13.1 overs, and in need of a stabilising partnership. This came when Asghar Stanekzai combined with Raees Ahmadzai (38) to put on 81 runs for the fifth wicket. Irfan Ahmed provided late hope for Hong Kong when he took a return catch from Ahmadzai, but this only brought Nabi to the crease. Stanekzai played a key innings for Afghanistan, compiling an unbeaten 55 from 93 balls, including three fours and a six.

Malaysia all-rounder, Suresh Navaratnam, almost pulled off another match-winning performance as he scored 115 as his side fell just eight runs short in the other semi-final against Nepal. Navaratnam took vital wickets in his team's win over United Arab Emirates on Wednesday. As he passed his century it seemed he may play a similar role, this time with the bat, but Malaysia was all-out with two balls remaining. It was seemingly the second unlikely comeback in two days after Nepal amassed 271 for six in their 50 overs. Nepal's total was based around an unbeaten 97 from Sharad Vesawkar with help from Gyanendra Malla (49) and Shakti Gauchan (52).

Friday's final should attract considerable interest, featuring the two teams with the most passionate suuporters in Asian non-Test cricket.

In the play-off for seventh and eighth place, event hosts Kuwait celebrated their last game of the tournament with a comfortable 10 wicket win over Bhutan.

Perhaps wanting to protect their bowlers from conceding another record score, Bhutan opted to bat after winning the toss. The Bhutanese battled hard to survive 41.4 overs to reach 132 all out. Left-hander Sonam Tobgay (48) top-scored for Bhutan while Tshering Tashi made 32. Slow left arm bowler Muhammad Javed was the pick of the Kuwaiti bowlers, taking 3 for 31.

The fact batting is the stronger of the Bhutanese disciplines was evidenced when Kuwait needed just 11.5 overs to overtake Bhutan's total. Kuwait opener Khalid Hussain smashed 83 not out and captain Hisham Mirza an unbeaten 38 to give Kuwait a 10 wicket victory with 139 balls to spare. Both teams can now rest up until December when they are due to play in the World Cricket League Division Eight tournament, also in Kuwait.

The ACC Trophy continues on Thursday when United Arab Emirates and Oman meet in the play-off for fifth and sixth places.

Tony Munro

Malaysia’s coach, Rajiv Seth says his team is fortunate to be pooled with Asian Twenty20 Cup champion Afghanistan and 2008 ACC Trophy runner-up United Arab Emirates in Group B as a positive for the tournament which starts this Wednesday in Kuwait. "We are lucky to be pitched against the best because every match will be a final for our boys and that should bring the best out of them,” Seth said. “I feel our boys have it in them to surprise bigwigs like Afghanistan, UAE & Bahrain though we respect our opponents’ credentials."

Seth is pleased with his team’s "rich blend of youth and experience." The veterans in the side are allrounder and former captain, Suresh Navaratnam, who has played several seasons of grade cricket in Melbourne. He has represented Malaysia for over 10 years as has punishing left-hander opener, Rakesh Madhavan. "Generally, most of the side has been around for more than two to three years - Noorwira Rahim is the youngest of the lot and is a left-arm spin bowler who can bat reasonably well,” Seth said.

Malaysia has prepared for the tournament at the ACC High Performance program for the past eight weeks, concentrating on a combination of centre-wicket sessions and game-sense methods.
Also joining Malaysia, United Arab Emirates and Afghanistan in Group B is Bhutan.

Malaysia squad: Suhan Kumar (capt), Ahmad Faiz, Faris Almas, Rakesh Madhavan, Damith Warusavithana, Suresh Navaratnam, Anwar Arudin, Eszrafiq Azis, Shukri Rahim, Nik Arifin, Shafiq Sharif, Hassan Ghulam, Noorwira Rahim, Shahrulnizam Yusof

Malaysia's matches: April 1 v Bahrain, April 3 v Afghanistan, April 4 v Bhutan, April 5 v UAE
Meanwhile, there are seven survivors from Hong Kong's 2008 ACC Trophy winning squad to defend its title starting this Wednesday, against Nepal.

Among those are left-hander Najeeb Amar, who was Man of the Match with a century in the final, two years ago against United Arab Emirates, and young allrounder, Irfan Ahmed, who recently earned the match award against Afghanistan in the Under-19 World Cup.

Hong Kong coach, Tabarak Dar, who has assumed a non-playing role after handing the captaincy over to Amar, said Ahmed will be a key player in this tournament. "A lethal weapon he is, bowling at 140-150ks at present and similarly scoring runs. He is growing fast and getting mature."

Dar said the squad had the strike-power to get the results, and dismissed the significance of its 10th place at the ACC Twenty20 Cup last November.

"We have 14 match-winners you need two or three to strike in one match to win matches. The squad resembles the one finished 10th at the ACC Twenty20, but they have a different coach this time and a different format. We are the current ACC defending champions and we will try our best to defend our title."

Hong Kong is in Group A along with Nepal, Kuwait, Singapore and Oman.

Hong Kong: Najeeb Amar (capt), Roy Lamsam, Zain Abbas, Irfan Ahmed, Nadeem Ahmed, Waqas Barkat, Hussain Butt, Ilyas Gul, Aizaz Khan, Asif Khan, Nizakat Khan, Vikash Vaswani, Nasir Hameed, Jawaid Iqbal

Hong Kong's matches: March 31 v Nepal, April 2 v Kuwait, April 4 v Singapore, April 6 v Oman.

Tony Munro

Oman will be without captain Hemal Mehta for their return to the top level of non-Test cricket in Asia, the ACC Trophy Elite, to be held in Kuwait from March 31 to April 9.

Mehta had to opt out due to work commitments so the squad will be led by wicketkeeper Sultan Ahmed, who has been Mehta's deputy in several previous non-Test tournaments.

The squad includes the core of the team which has made it one of the more unpredictable in the second tier of Asian cricket. Aggressive allrounder Hemin Desai, middle-order batsmen Adnan Iyas and Vaibhav Wategaonkar and fast bowler Awal Khan are regular members of the Omani team.

Mehta's absence is a blow not just due to his captaincy, as he was player of the tournament at last year's ACC Trophy Challenge (the virtual second division of Asian non-Test cricket). Oman easily won the tournament to earn promotion back to the top flight. They were consigned to the Challenge after losing two of three matches in the 2006 ACC Trophy, and were the runners-up in the 2004 ACC Trophy and third in the ACC Twenty20 Cup last November.

Oman is in Group A alongside Hong Kong, Nepal, Singapore and Kuwait. Group B comprises United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan, Malaysia, Bahrain and Bhutan.

The squad is: Sultan Ahmed (capt), Rafeeq Al-Balushi, Yousuf Mahmood Sufyan Mahmood, Hemin Desai, Adnan Ilyas, Vaibhav Wategaonkar, Zeeshan Siddiqui, Awal Khan, Khalid Rasheed, Amir Ali, Nileshkumar Parmar, Tariq Hussain, Aamir Khaleem; coach - Mazhar Khan.

The Asian Cricket Council has announced that in its tournaments it will be mandatory to include three members in the playing side who are passport holders of the country they represent, and no team will be permitted to field more than two players in the under-four-year-residency category.

This ruling will initially apply to Under-16 sides but the aim is to roll it out across all age groups and eventually senior sides.

The number of qualified players used to boost sides, as opposed to home-grown talent, has been a concern for a long time and continues to be so. The USA side at the recent ICC World Twenty20 Qualifiers was almost entirely made up of players from the Caribbean and the subcontinent, while some other Associates and Affiliates have at times had as few as one player who could not be considered an expat.

"If cricket is to put down roots and grow and break out of the relatively small cradle in which it currently is placed in many countries, it has to be played by, taken up by, as significant and substantial a part of the population as possible,” a statement on the ACC website said. "Cricket is increasingly an Asian game yet at the same time, it cannot be a game for the people connected to just a few Asian countries."

The ACC’s decision had an immediate impact, causing Qatar and UAE to withdraw from the ACC Under-16 Elite Cup.

The UAE are particular unhappy with the new regulations because local laws make it hard, and in some instances impossible, for some people born in the Emirates to gain citizenship.

Afghanistan and India's Under-21 sides have withdrawn from the South Asian Games cricket tournament. The decisions mean only three Test teams remain - Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka - along with two others - Maldives and Nepal. They will play a round-robin competition with the top two teams playing off. The tournament starts on January 31 and run to February 7.

The rumbling debate over the number of expats included in several leading Associate sides has resurfaced after comments from Syed Ashraful Haq, the chief executive of the Asian Cricket Council, that some of them should not enter next year’s Asian Games.

Haq’s remarks came because of a change of rules regarding eligibility for the Games which state only passport holders of the participating countries can take part. For some that would leave them fielding second or third XI teams. UAE, for example, only had two eligible players in their side at the recently-completed ACC Twenty20 tournament.

Asked if UAE should send a side to the Games, Haq said: “My conviction is that they should not … they should not undermine the tournament.

“They cannot send a team who cannot play the game. They cannot bowl out a team like India or Pakistan and then get bowled out for 10. It will undermine the whole game and also jeopardise our chances of taking the game forward. It takes out all the countries from the Middle East.”

Haq’s comments brought a predictably stinging response from the man managing the all-Emirati side. “I have worked with Ashraful Haq for many years and have never heard him give a good piece of advice,” Abdulrazzaq Kazim told the local National newspaper. “Why should we listen to him now? We will go. Of course, if we play against India or Sri Lanka or Pakistan, we will lose. But if we don’t go, from where will get the experience? It is of benefit for us to go and play there.”

Dilawar Mani, chief executive of the Emirates Cricket Board, endorsed that view. “Of course we are not in the same level of the elite teams but if China can field a team as the host, why not the others,” he told the newspaper.

It seems unlikely the UAE will not send a team, but Haq’s comments have raised a genuine question being asked by many. If a team consists almost entirely of expats, can it be considered truly representative?

Hong Kong beat Thailand to win the inaugural Asian Cricket Council’s women’s Twenty20 in Kuala Lumpar.

Hong Kong posted 106 for 4, thanks to a late charge engineered by Connie Wong, who made 23 off 21 balls. In reply, Thailand were always slightly behind the asking rate, and were left needing 17 off the final two overs and six off the last ball. Ishitaa Gidwani kept things interesting by bowling a wide, but she followed with a dot ball to secure the win.

Nepal thrashed China by 73 runs, bowling them out for 30, to win the third-place play-off.

Hong Kong romped to an impressively comprehensive eight-wicket win over Afghanistan in the final of the ACC Under-19 Elite Cup to book a spot at the next U-19 World Cup.

It brought Afghanistan cricket back down to earth after all the success for both the senior and U-19 side in recent weeks. They were supported by a vocal crowd, but Hong Kong proved too efficient in all areas of the game as they comfortably chased down 216 with three overs to spare.

James Atkinson, the captain, crunched 94 from 114 balls while Nizakat Khan made an unbeaten 46. Shakeel Haq also played his part with 51 to ensure a potentially testing target was passed with ease in a tournament where the scoring has been on the low side. Atkinson led from the front before falling 36 runs from victory and his innings earned the Man-of-the-Match award.

Afghanistan had been put on the back foot early as they slumped to 21 for 4 in the seventh over and did exceptionally well to reach 215. Asghar Hotak (70) and Zard Ali (68) held the middle order together to keep them in the contest, but there was to be no fairytale finish this time.

Nepal beat Qatar by a convincing seven wickets to earn them third place in the first playoff of the ACC Under-19 Elite Cup. Qatar were rolled over for just 142 – only Minas Khais (50 from 82) threatened to build an innings – with Prithu Baskota picking up 3 for 24. Nepal raced to their target in 37.1 overs as Gyanendra Malla smacked ten fours in his unbeaten 67.

In the day’s other playoff, Malaysia chased down 176 to comfortably beat UAE by four wickets in the 5th and 6th position playoffs. UAE only mustered 175 largely thanks to a 76-ball 75 from Taimoor Khalil, as Abdul Rashid (4 for 43) cut through the middle order. Malaysia lost six wickets in their chase, but Faris Almas made 52 while Aminuddin Ramly cracked 68 from 79 to guide them home.

	Man-of-the-Match Aimal Wafa is lifted from the field after Afghanistan's win © ACC

Nepal batted on winning the toss, but while the first two overs produced 23 runs, two wickets fell and thereafter the innings struggled for any momentum. Only Prithu Baskota looked to take the attack to the bowlers, hammering three sixes on his way to 81. Some late hitting helped Nepal to 186 for 8, with 73 coming off the last ten overs after they had been 113 for 6.

Afghanistan also wobbled early on, and at 54 for 3 in the 16th over, Nepal appeared to be back on track. But Man of the Match Aimal Wafa (61*) and Asgher Hotak (478) came together at 84 for 4 and not only consolidated but also kept up with the required rate, adding an unbeaten 106 for the fifth wicket to see their side home.

There was less drama in the other semi-final where Hong Kong beat Qatar by 23 runs, despite only making 161 themselves.

Nepal, the odds-on favourites who have dominated recent Asian Cricket Council Under-19 tournaments, were brought down to earth with a bump by Hong Kong who sent them crashing to a 36-run defeat. The result means both teams go through to the semi-finals.

Irfan Ahmed was the star of the show for Hong Kong, thumping 103 off 101 balls in a score of 193 for 7. Nepal struggled from the off and were bowled out for 157, Irfan Ahmed making the Man-of-the-Match adjudication a formality with 3 for 72 while Shakeel Haq took 4 for 17.
In the other Group A match, Singapore beat Saudi Arabia by 39 runs.

With Afghanistan already through from Group B, the other place was between UAE and Qatar, and it was Qatar who went through, bowling Bhutan out for 69 and coasting to a nine-wicket win - UAE’s 130-run defeat of Oman wasn’t enough.

Afghanistan will play a shell-shocked Nepal, while Hong Kong meet Qatar

Nepal, the odds-on favourites who have dominated recent Asian Cricket Council Under-19 tournaments, were brought down to earth with a bump by Hong Kong who sent them crashing to a 36-run defeat. The result means both teams go through to the semi-finals.

Irfan Ahmed was the star of the show for Hong Kong, thumping 103 off 101 balls in a score of 193 for 7. Nepal struggled from the off and were bowled out for 157, Irfan Ahmed making the Man-of-the-Match adjudication a formality with 3 for 72 while Shakeel Haq took 4 for 17.
In the other Group A match, Singapore beat Saudi Arabia by 39 runs.

With Afghanistan already through from Group B, the other place was between UAE and Qatar, and it was Qatar who went through, bowling Bhutan out for 69 and coasting to a nine-wicket win - UAE’s 130-run defeat of Oman wasn’t enough.

Afghanistan will play a shell-shocked Nepal, while Hong Kong meet Qatar

An outstanding all-round display from Irfan Ahmed stole the show at Unity as he almost single-handily carried Hong Kong to a 36-run against Nepal. Ahmed hit an unbeaten 103 as most of the other batsmen struggled, then he followed that up three wickets as Nepal were bowled out for 157.

Qatar raced to a nine-wicket win against Bhutan who were bowled out for just 69 as Ali Ishtiaq took 4 for 11.

Oman were overwhelmed by UAE’s batting strength, falling to a 130-run defeat, after Rahul Chattwani hit a fine 98 to form the cornerstone of UAE’s 329.

Singapore eased past Saudi Arabia by 69 runs as Prem Dadlani’s 70 led them to 201 which proved too much of a run chase for the Saudis.

Afghanistan continued their good form on the fifth day of the ACC Under-19 Elite Cup in Kuwait, beating Qatar by 108 runs, while Hong Kong and Oman also notched easy victories.

Hong Kong took no time to dismiss Malaysia for just 83 in 27 overs, racing to a comprehensive six-wicket win to keep their hopes of a semi-final place alive. Aizaz Khan and Niaz Ali gained just enough movement with the new ball to make life tricky for Malaysia’s top-order, but it was Irfan Ahmed who ripped through their middle order with 6 for 22. Hong Kong lost four wickets in chasing 84 but were never in any trouble chasing such a slim target.

Afghanistan humbled Qatar by 108 runs at Hubara, compiling a dominant 292 for 5 before skittling their opponents for 184 in 45 overs. Bhutan were thrashed by Oman at Unity, as they were bowled out for just 86 chasing 222.

Afghanistan notched a tense three-wicket win over UAE on the fourth day of the ACC Under-19 Elite Cup in Kuwait. Malaysia and Nepal also registered wins.

Chasing 192 Afghanistan took their time, and appeared to have blown their chance of victory, and the slow pitch wasn’t helping their scoring either. Yet despite needing more than a run-a-ball, at 126 for 6, they were gifted two dropped chances by UAE’s fielders and Asgher Hotak stroked 85 to see them home.

Meanwhile, Nepal reached their target of 171 for the loss of seven wickets with more than five overs to spare, beating Singapore by three wickets. And Malaysia romped home against Saudi Arabia, reaching their target of 128 in just 17 overs.

Saudi Arabia pulled off a massive upset with a five-wicket win over Hong Kong on the third day of the ACC Under-19 Elite Cup in Kuwait. There were also wins for Qatar and UAE.

Hong Kong crashed to 89 for 7 after winning the toss, but an eighth-wicket stand of 137 between Waqas Barkat (84) and Aizaz Khan (66) appeared to have got them out of jail and they finished on 241. The Saudis lost early wickets but then Abdul Salam (68) and Hasan Bukhari (57*) added 118 for the fifth wicket before Salam was run out. While Bukhari kept his end up, Waqas Khalid thumped 40 from 29 balls to the Saudi Arabia home with 25 balls to spare.

UAE bounced back from their opening-day loss to beat Bhutan, but again they were well below par as they squeezed to a three-wicket win. Qatar had no problems seeing off Oman, bowling them out for 107 and then easing to a seven-wicket victory with almost 20 overs in hand.

Nepal and Afghanistan made it two wins out of two on the second day of the ACC Under-19 Elite Cup in Kuwait.

Nepal’s win was against Malaysia, one of the pre-tournament favourites, and it extended their winning run against them to seven matches. Malaysia batted on winning the toss and scored 203, built around 90 from Keithan. Gyanendra Malla, Nepal’s captain, made 86 not out as they passed the target with six wickets in hand.

Afghanistan dismissed Oman for 188 (their last five wickets fell for 20) and then cruised to an eight-wicket win as Iqbal Maliki (86)and Noor ul Haq (79) put on 157 for the first wicket.

Hong Kong opened their account with a four-wicket win over Singapore who they bowled out for 124, aided by no fewer than five run-outs. Jamie Atkinson, who made his first-class debut for Durham UCCE earlier this month, hit 61 to spearhead the chase.

Pre-tournament favourites Malaysia and Nepal cruised to easy wins on the opening day of the ten-team ACC Under-19 Elite Cup in Kuwait. Afghanistan, whose senior side were the success story of the recent ICC World Cup Qualifiers, also got off to a flying start, but there was a surprise defeat for UAE.

Malaysia eased to a five-wicket win with more than ten overs to spare over Singapore after bowling them out for 183, Prem Dadlani providing the bulk of Singapore’s run with 96.

Nepal had more trouble in beating Saudi Arabia, and they had Amrit Bhattarai to thank as his 82 helped them to 233 after they had slipped to 76 for 7. That was too much for the Saudis who were bowled out for 96.

Afghanistan thrashed Bhutan by eight wickets after bowling them out for 63, ambling home in 13 overs.

UAE were bundled to a two-wicket defeat by Qatar after being bowled out for 164.

The Asian Cricket Council has announced its rankings for non Test-playing countries and Singapore have emerged as the leading side with Nepal and UAE second and third.

The rankings were based on two years’ performances in various levels of competition, including Under -15, U-17, U-19 and ACC Trophy events.

Click here for the full rankings.

Malaysia beat Qatar by 55 runs to reach the final of the ACC Under-17 Elite Cup, where they will take on home side Nepal who beat UAE by 21 runs. Click here for a full report.

Odds-on favourites Oman crushed Bhutan by 213 runs in the final of the Asian Cricket Council Challenge in Chiang Mai. Put into bat, Oman amassed 322 for 9 and then dismissed Bhutan for 109
.

Click here for the full report

China finally turned in a performance to quell if not silence criticism of their large-scale funding in beating Myanmar by 118 runs in the Asian Cricket Council Challenge, a game one wag labelled "the battle of the dictatorships". That the victory was in the bottom-place play-off and came after three massive defeats will not be lost on those watching China's progress carefully.

Click here for full report

Oman and Thailand retained their unbeaten records with emphatic wins over Myanmar and China on the fourth day of the Asian Cricket Council Trophy Challenge in Chiang Mai, Thailand, but the standard of the teams continued to cause concern.

Click here for the full round-up.

Maldives and Bhutan recorded decisive wins on the third day of the Asian Cricket Council Challenge in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Click here for the full report.

Afghanistan beat Oman by 42 runs to win the Asian Cricket Council's Under-17 Challenge Cup in Bangkok, but the event was hardly an inspiring advertisement for the sport in general, and China's development programme in particular.

Click here for the full report of the tournament ... and China's nightmare

The top sides in Asia outside of the Test arena gather in Malaysia for the highly anticipated ACC Trophy. While the UAE starts the event as strong favourites, having not lost a single match since 2000 in this tournament, they are likely to face some tough competition at the event.

Afghanistan
Packed with talent and strong in batting, bowling and with a great desire to succeed, Afghanistan are rated by many as being the one team capable of defeating the UAE. Led by ‘Iceman’ spin-bowling allrounder Nowroz Mangal and backed up by the pace of Hamid Hassan and allround abilities of Mohammad Nabi, (who have both played for the MCC) it has quality in the right areas. Afghanistan’s success at the ICC World Cricket League Division Five in Jersey in May has also shown they can deal with the pressure of the big occasion.

Bahrain
Finding their way back into the top-flight of ACC competition after a period in the wilderness, Bahrain may not yet quite be back at their 2006 ACC Trophy best when they lost a close quarter-final to Nepal. That year they also won the ACC Middle East Cup beating Afghanistan in the Final. Many of those players from are back in 2008.

Hong Kong
Fresh from the Asia Cup, where their spinners had Pakistan at 161 for 7 at one stage and also troubled India’s batsmen, Hong Kong are quietly confident of being able to reach the final for the second consecutive tournament. An excellent side with an optimal blend of youth and experience, they may be that their spinners who again do the job for them on Malaysian wickets.

Kuwait
Kuwait show flashes of absolute brilliance with bat and ball and in the field but are never quite able to sustain their form throughout a match let alone a tournament. Still, they can never be discounted and they plays an enterprising brand of cricket. The oldest player in the competition is in their squad, Javed Mohammed at 46, as well as the youngest, Saad Khalid at 17.

Malaysia
They have emerged from a period of rebuilding with a team which could seriously challenge for top honours in the tournament. Hardy perennials remain: offspinning allrounder Rohan Suppiah, opener Rakesh Madhavan, pace-bowling all-rounders Krishnamurthi and Suresh Navaratnam. They are bolstered by the rising talent of batsmen Darvin Muralitharan and ICC U/19 World Cup captain Ahmed Faiz as well as former Sri Lankan A international Priyankara Wickramasinghe. Wickramasinghe is a legspinning allrounder who qualified for Malaysia just last month.

Nepal
A settled squad captained by Binod Das, filled with familiar faces, promises much as ever. There won’t be a better fielding side in the competition and the side will also be keen to make up for the disappointment of the ICC World Cricket League Division Five when it’s dream of qualification for the 2011 World Cup ended when it lost to Afghanistan in the semi-final. In Mahaboob Alam, who famously took ten wickets in Jersey earlier this year, they have one of the most dangerous bowlers at this level of cricket.

Qatar
Batting talent in bundles in this side – from openers Omer Taj and Muhammad Jahangir to teen tyro Tamoor Sajjad and middle-order maulers Saleem Akhtar and Rusharat Ali. Qatar’s bowling is steady if not being penetrative and their fielding and general level of fitness have let them down in the past.

Saudi Arabia
They set the 2006 ACC Trophy alight with some excellent power-hitting and it looks capable of doing the same again this year. Sarfraz Ahmed returns at number three and he goes in after one of the potential stars of the tournament, opener Hammad Saeed. Abid Naseem bats at No. 4 and will anchor the innings but it may just be their young left-arm spinner Ijaz Sagheer who wins them matches. He impresses on concrete back home and in Malaysia his flight, guile, loop and turn will be a handful.

Singapore
Blending nationalised expatriates and home-grown talent, they have a squad full of talent. With a convincing win over Afghanistan at the ICC World Cricket League Division 5, Singapore is more than capable of winning the competition.

UAE
You look at this side’s batting: Saqib Ali, Arshad Ali, Amjad Ali Khurram Khan and you see hundreds of runs. Left-handed wicket-keeper/opener Amjad was the only batsman at the 2008 Asia Cup to play Ajantha Mendis with any confidence – off the 10 balls he received from Mendis, Amjad hit 16 runs - and he and his Lara-like backlift are likely to provide some of the tournament’s most remarkable sights. Pace bowler Zahid Shah was second only to Mendis in the Asia Cup and he is backed up by an excellent all-round attack with plenty of variety.

Cricinfo has learned that the Afro-Asia Cup, which was reported to have been quietly sidelined after the 2007 event in Bangalore, has been revived.

Plans had been discussed whereby the existing Asia Cup, which takes place in Pakistan next month, would be supplemented with an African Cup. The winners of the two tournaments would then play off in an Afro-Asia final.

However, the packed international schedule meant that it was too difficult to find room for the African competition in 2008 and so a competition using the old three-ODI format will be held in Kenya during 2009.

Although the event has raised valuable funds for the African Cricket Association and the Asian Cricket Council, it has been less than a hit with audiences and has struggled to find a niche in the calendar. Despite the best intentions of the two associations, the weight of cricket means that it is still by no means certain to proceed.

The Asian Cricket Council has confirmed Malaysia as the venue for the 2008 ACC Trophy Elite Division. The 10-team tournament will be held from July 25 to August 3, with all matches likely to be staged in Kuala Lumpur.

It was also confirmed the ACC Trophy will be held as two separate tournaments for the first time.

The ACC Trophy Elite tournament will be contested by the top 10 ranked ACC members: Afghanistan, Bahrain, Hong Kong, Kuwait, Malaysia, Nepal, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and the holders, the United Arab Emirates.

The ACC Trophy Challenge for the remaining ACC members is likely to be staged in Kuwait from January 11-17, 2009. Among the invitees are Bhutan, Brunei, Burma, China, Iran, the Maldives, Oman and Thailand, although it remains to be seen whether China fields a team.
Tony Munro

Not have the ICC cut the number of Associates at the next World Cup from six to four at the behest of the hosts, but the Asian Cricket Council hopes that two of those slots will be taken by Asian counties.

"India beating Australia is very good for cricket in Asia and will encourage nations like Bangladesh, United Arab Emirates, China and Afghanistan," Ashraful Huq, a former secretary of the Bangladesh Cricket Board, told AFP. "I watched both the finals in Australia and was amazed how the young Indian team paid the Australians back, both on and off the field."

Click here for the full story

Saudi Arabia won the ACC Under-19 Challenge Cup, but the tournament was marred by six of the ten participants withdrawing.

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Thailand may be a cricketing backwater, but the game these has a decent foothold and it also attracts touring sides to the prestigious Chaing Mai Sixes.

However, the national board continues to attract much criticism and that is now spilling over into the country’s main competition, the Bangkok Cricket League, which is due to start its new season this month.

Click here to read more and comment

Afghanistan and Oman tied the final of the ACC Twenty20 Cup in Kuwait.

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A few of you have contacted us to ask how the inaugural ACC Twenty20 Cup is getting along. We're struggling to find actual scorecards, but can tell you that Nepal have beaten Malaysia in the opening round.

Nepal recovered from 84/6 to accumulate 121/9 in 20 overs –thanks to 38-run seventh wicket stand by Basant Regmi and captain Binod Das. Malaysia was bowled out for 100 runs in 18.5 overs.

A full report is available at Nepal's enthusiastically updated website. According to the Kuwait Cricket Association's site, Nepal were today beaten by Qatar.

Do get in touch if you have any photos to share.

The 2007 ACC Twenty20 Cup gets underway on October 27, a ten-team tournament held in Kuwait.

Hong Kong Cricket's website, which Cricinfo hosts, will have more once the tournament gets underway.