The UAE can prepare to face the stars of India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh after qualifying for the Women’s Asia Cup.
The national team qualified for the continent’s top limited-overs competition after reaching the semi-finals of the ACC Women’s Premier Cup in Malaysia.
It will be their third consecutive appearance at the Asia Cup. Coincidentally, their only win to date in that event came against Malaysia, back in 2024, who were the side they beat to clinch qualification this time around.
The quarter-finals at the Premier Cup in Kuala Lumpur were the significant fixtures of the tournament. Only the last four sides qualify for the Asia Cup.
The UAE did not find run scoring as easy as they had done in pool play, but they still made it to 138 for two in their 20 overs. Malaysia could only make it to 86 for five in reply.
Esha Oza earned the player of the match award for the third time out of the five matches the UAE have played at the tournament.
The captain hit 42 in 39 balls as she shared in a 70-run stand for the opening wicket with Theertha Satish. She then took two for 16 in four overs with the ball.
It was Theertha who did most to build a total that proved beyond the home team.
The wicketkeeper-opener batted through the innings to reach 65 not out. The fact she then spent 20 overs keeping in sapping conditions was quite a feat.
So extreme were the conditions, Mas Elysa, Malaysia’s captain, vomited on the field during the course of her innings in the run chase.
“[Theertha] is a great batter and she hasn’t yet shown what she can do,” Oza said. “She is way better than this, and hopefully she can show that in the next game as well.”
The UAE will now face Hong Kong in the semi-final on Friday, and Oza is expecting her side to raise their game again.
“We were much better today and had good partnerships with the bat, especially the way Theertha and Heena [Hotchandani] ended the innings,” Oza said.
“That was a crucial partnership [worth 60 in 7.3 overs], and the way they accelerated at the end laid a good platform for us.
“In terms of areas we need to work on, I think we still need to bowl more tightly. We have been here and there, not bowling to one side [of the wicket], so that is something we need to improve on.
“We also need to stop losing wickets in clusters, and making sure we build partnerships.”
