U19 ACC Asia Cup: Pakistan departs for Dubai

Pakistan U19 departed from Karachi to Dubai to take part in the eight-team ACC U19 Asia Cup, scheduled from 12 to 21 December.

Pakistan, placed in Group ‘A’, will play their opening match against Malaysia at the Sevens Stadium in Dubai on Friday, 12 December.

Pakistan’s second match in the tournament will be against India at the ICC Academy Ground on Sunday, 14 December, while their third fixture will be against the UAE on Tuesday, 16 December, also at the ICC Academy Ground.

Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka are part of Group ‘B’.

As per the tournament format, the top two sides from each group will compete in the semi-finals scheduled for 19 December, while the final will take place at the ICC Academy Ground on Sunday, 21 December.

The tournament, which will be played in the 50-over format, will begin at 9am local time.

Before team’s departure to Dubai, the Pakistan U19 squad underwent a seven-day camp at the Hanif Mohammad High Performance Centre in Karachi, where players featured in practice matches in addition to taking part in training sessions.

Talking to PCB Digital before team’s departure to Dubai, Sarfaraz Ahmed (manager/mentor) said:

“We have done our best and reminded the players that they are the finest young cricketers in Pakistan. Their strong performances earned them a place in the side and we have given them complete backing and confidence.

“We are hopeful they will deliver strong performances for Pakistan. Over the past seven days, the players have worked extremely hard and trained intensively.

“We will have a practice session before the Asia Cup and we hope the team settles in quickly and performs well in the tournament. To be the best team in the competition, you have to perform consistently in all three matches.”

Squad: Farhan Yousaf (captain), Usman Khan (vice-captain), Abdul Subhan, Ahmed Hussain, Ali Hassan Baloch, Ali Raza, Daniyal Ali Khan, Hamza Zahoor (wk), Huzaifa Ahsan, Momin Qamar, Mohammad Huzaifa, Mohammad Sayyam, Mohammad Shayan (wk), Niqab Shafiq and Sameer Minhas