(MENAFN- The Peninsula)
Chinthana Wasala | The Peninsula
The Western region Asia Qualifiers for 2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup, hosted by the Qatar cricket Association (QCA), will get underway tomorrow at the Asian Town Cricket Stadium.
The six-day tournament will see hosts Qatar competing against Bahrain, Maldives, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia in a round robin format, with the top team joining Hong Kong at the next round - the eight-team global qualifiers.
The Asia Qualifiers consist of two sub-regional groups, A and B, and the Group A tournament was originally scheduled to be held in Kuwait, but was later moved to Qatar before it got postponed several times due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Earlier this month, the International Cricket Council (ICC) cancelled the Group B event in Malaysia due to the pandemic, and Hong Kong progressed to the next stage as the highest-ranked team.
During a press conference held in Doha yesterday, QCA President Youssef Jaham Al Kuwari said stage is set for the event.
“We are very happy to host the event after so many stoppages during this time of pandemic. We are ready to host a world class event,” said Al Kuwari.
“Anyone can come and watch the action at the Asian Town Stadium and all they have to do is to adhere to the general health protocols. There is no need to buy tickets. Wear face masks and maintain suitable social distancing and those are the only conditions,” Al Kuwari said.
“We will be following all necessary health precautions during the event. I would like to extend special thanks to all the teams, who are participating and helping us make this event a success.
“I would like to wish them best of luck. We look forward to hosting a great event,”Al Kuwari said.
Commenting on the tournament, ICC's Tournament Director Niteesha Kothari said that Qatar's reputation when it comes to hosting international events led the ICC to award the host status of the tournament.
“Qatar has got a fantastic stadium. Qatar has hosted a lot of T20 international matches. The country is already there on the world map when it comes to hosting international events. So we wanted to give Qatar this opportunity to host this event because Qatar is a very important member for us, not only in the GCC, but also among all the members,” Kothari said.
“We were extended great support and all the assistance that is required. For that I would like to extend my thanks to Qatar Cricket Association, President Al Kuwari, General Secretary Abdulla Aman Al Khater, Assistant General Secretary Eisa Ali Ibrahim Ghanem, Operations Manager Manzoor Ahmad and everybody in the cricket fraternity for the warm hospitality. We are looking forward to a highly successful event,” Kothari said.
“All the teams are here and we look forward to see exciting action,” she added.
Qatar will open their campaign in the tournament against Bahrain in the opening day. The day's second match will be between Saudi Arabia and Maldives.
The next T20 World Cup will be held in Australia in October/November, 2022.
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