The 2018 Asia Cup Qualifier was a cricket tournament that was held in Malaysia from 29 August to 6 September 2018.[2] The event served as the qualifier for the 2018 Asia Cup.[3][4][5] The top two teams from the group stage met in the final, with the winner progressing to the 2018 Asia Cup.[6] The fixture between the United Arab Emirates and Nepal on 30 August 2018 was a One Day International (ODI) match.[7] It was the first time both sides had played each other in an ODI match, with the UAE going on to win the fixture by 78 runs.[8]
The United Arab Emirates finished top of the group stage with eight points. They were joined in the final by Hong Kong, who finished second with seven points, and a better net run rate than Oman, who also finished with seven points.[9][10] Hong Kong won the final, beating the UAE by two wickets, to qualify for the 2018 Asia Cup.[11][12] Hong Kong's captain, Anshuman Rath, said afterwards that "all the hard work that has gone in this tournament over the last couple of months really has paid off".[13]
Squads
The following teams and squads were selected to take part:[5]