UAE Qualifies as 20th Team for T20 World Cup

Staff Reporter | PNN:
The seventh edition of the T20 World Cup will be held next February in India and partially in Sri Lanka. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has secured its place as the 20th and final team for the tournament. The team earned its World Cup spot by defeating Japan in the Asia-Pacific regional qualifiers held on Thursday in Al Amerat, Oman.

Japan batted first and scored only 116 runs for 9 wickets, with Watari Miyauchi resisting with 45 runs at number nine. However, his innings lacked support, and the team could not post a bigger total.

Chasing the small target, UAE delivered a confident performance. Opener Alishan Sharafu scored 46 runs, while captain Mohammad Wasim remained unbeaten at 42. UAE won the match with 8 wickets in hand and 47 balls remaining, securing their place in the T20 World Cup as the 20th team. They finished the qualifiers with 6 points from 5 matches. Previously, Nepal and Oman from the same region had already qualified.

For the upcoming World Cup, India will participate as the host along with Sri Lanka. Teams that qualified directly include Afghanistan, Australia, Bangladesh, England, South Africa, USA, and West Indies. Based on rankings, Pakistan, New Zealand, and Ireland also secured spots.

The remaining eight spots were filled through regional qualifiers: Canada from the Americas, Italy and Netherlands from Europe, Namibia and Zimbabwe from Africa, and Nepal, Oman, and UAE from the Asia-Pacific region.

Cricket fans are now eagerly anticipating the exciting World Cup starting in February, where 20 teams will compete for the ultimate crown.