Sri Lanka A, Bangladesh A start off with wins in inaugural ACC Women's T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup

ACC Women's T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup 2023 (Source: Twitter)

The inaugural edition of the ACC Women's T20 Emerging Teams Asia Cup kicked off on Monday, June 12 at the Mission Road Ground in Kowloon, Hong Kong. Sri Lanka A and Bangladesh A began their tournament campaigns with victories against the United Arab Emirates and Malaysia, respectively. Sri Lanka women's won by three wickets in a low-scoring thriller, while Bangladesh women's triumphed by 97 runs in the second match.

UAE won the toss and elected to bat first but were bundled out for 95 runs in 19.3 overs. Opener Isha Oza were the top scorer (39), while the rest of the batters failed to find any resistance. Madushika Methtananda was the standout of the Lankan bowlers, taking four wickets and destroying the UAE batting line-up. Malsha Shehani and Nimasha Meepage took two wickets each.

However, it was not easy for Sathya Sandeepani's team to chase down the low score. The bowlers made it difficult for the Lankan batters but they cruised to victory with a ball to spare. Opener Vishmi Gunaratne is Lanka's top scorer. Oza also shined with the ball by taking two wickets.

Bangladesh bowlers tear through Malaysia

Talking about the second match, Bangladesh won the toss and elected to bat first. The choice proved right, as they reached 148/6 in 20 overs, thanks to Murshida Khatun's magnificent unbeaten half-century. There were some handy contributions from Shorna Akter and Rabeya Khan in the end. Mahirah Izzati Ismail, Aisya Eleesa and Nur Dania Syuhada picked up two wickets each for Malaysia.

In reply, Malaysia got off to a poor start as they lost opener Wan Julia for a golden duck. None of the batters could touch the 15-run mark as Bangladesh bowlers were on the money right from the start. Malaysia managed to score only 58 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in 20 overs. Rabeya Khan took two wickets, while Sultana Khatun, Nahida Akter, Sanjida Akter Meghla, and Marufa Akter each claimed one.

Tuesday will also see two matches, with Nepal facing Pakistan A in the first match and Hong Kong facing India A in the second.