Asia Cup 2018, Pakistan v Hong Kong, Match 2: Hong Kong Predicted XI

Hong Kong have a lot to gain out of the match with only the result at stake.

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Hong Kong team. (Photo Source: Twitter)

Hong Kong, after earning the right to feature in the Asia Cup, will be first facing the mighty Pakistani team in the first match. The Hong Kong team performed brilliantly in the recent Asia Cup Qualifier tournament and pretty much deserves to be a part of this tournament. Their players have shown some great application in the middle and a complete team effort in the qualifiers was clearly noticeable.

The stage is set for them to go out there and express their cricket against the giants. It will not be about the result as much as about the quality of the experience they earn. Hong Kong have a lot to gain in this game with only the outcome at stake which is to a great extent not even in question. Here is the Predicted XI for Hong Kong:

Openers (Anshuman Rath, Nizakat Khan)

Finding the ideal opening pair has been one of the biggest problems for Hong Kong in the recent times. In the qualifier tournament, the team tried out three opening pairs in five games. However, none of those gave them the desired result. While skipper Anshuman Rath will surely be one of the openers, there are quite a few question marks on the other and it is a tough one to predict. But, it could most likely be Nizakat Khan who will walk out alongside Rath.

This bowling all-rounder was primarily used as a batsman in the tournament but has failed in the first five games batting in the middle order. He only managed to score 42 runs in those games. But, when he opened the innings in the final, he scored a quick-fire 38 off 20 balls. The field restrictions will complement his aggressive style of play. Although he didn’t bowl even once in the qualifiers, he could easily roll his arm if required. Rath, with 209 runs in 6 games (second highest) was highly consistent in the qualifiers.

Middle Order (Babar Hayat, Kinchit Shah, Christopher Carter)

The 26-year-old Babar Hayat is one of the biggest strengths of the Hong Kong side. He is quite an experienced campaigner and has played in some of the T20 leagues around the world. In the recently concluded Global T20 Canada, he scored 146 runs in 6 innings at a strike rate of 176 for the Vancouver Knights. He accumulated 196 runs in the qualifiers and will be the key to Hong Kong’s success.

The Mumbai-born batting all-rounder Kinchit Shah could be used as a floater in the middle order. He usually bats down the order but is capable of scoring the quick runs. He scored 76 runs in 5 innings in the qualifier tournament. Christopher Carter would follow him up at No 5. Carter ended up being a complete misfit in the opening slot. But, he scored a crucial 33 off 32 balls in the final under immense pressure and is likely to continue at the same position.

All-rounders (Aizaz Khan, Tanwir Afzal)

Aizaz Khan and Tanwir Afzal will be the two bowling all-rounder in the Hong Kong side. These were two of the five bowlers who were used to bowl in the qualifiers. While Aizaz scored 58 runs in 5 innings with the bat, the latter, who bats much down the order piled 32 runs in 4 innings. With the ball, Aizaz picked 10 wickets in 6 games. The other all-rounder, Tanwir had 6 scalps to his name in 6 games.

Wicketkeeper (Scott McKechnie)

Scott McKechnie was in the XI solely to keep wickets during the Asia Cup Qualifiers 2018. He batted at No 8 or No 9 most times and didn’t have much to do with the bat. In 4 innings he scored 44 runs at an average of 22 and strike rate of 73. He is likely to take up a similar role in the main tournament as well.

Bowlers (Ehsan Khan, Ehsan Nawaz, Nadeem Ahmed)

The bowling department will consist of a fast bowler, an off-spinner and a left-arm orthodox bowler. With 11 wickets, offie Ehsan Khan was the highest wicket-taker for Hong Kong at the Qualifiers. Right-arm pace bowler, Ehsan Nawaz was not left far behind and picked 10 scalps. Nadeem Ahmed was the pick of the bowlers for Hong Kong in that tournament. He claimed 14 wickets and was the highest wicket-taker. Without any second thoughts, Hong Kong will go ahead with these three bowlers for this encounter.

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