The winless duo at the ongoing ICC under-19 Cricket World cup qualifier Asia division 2, Bhutan and Thailand will face each other to record the first win in group A of the qualifier today.

The national under-19 cricket team conceded its second consecutive loss to Saudi Arabia in the second game of ongoing qualifier in Thailand on December 10.

The boys recorded 54 runs in the second game against Saudi Arabia and lost to the latter by 43 runs. In the opening game, Bhutan lost to Oman by eight wickets on December 9.

Thailand played Saudi Arabia in the opening day and lost to the latter by 51 runs and suffered its second loss to Qatar by six wickets on December 10.

Coach Kumar Subba said his team did not play well while batting.  We are doing good in other fields and the boys are playing better cricket every day,” he said. “If our best U-19 was here, we could have won the game.”

Despite including under-16 players in the qualifying championship, Bhutan did not get time to prepare well because the most squad is comprised of students.

“Our target is to perform better in the upcoming Asian Cricket Council U-19 tournament,” said Kumar Subba. “We picked young players to let them gain exposure.”

The current squad participating in the championship was selected from Paro, Sarpang, Thimphu, and Wangdue.

Ten teams from Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Bahrain, China, Hongkong, Kuwait, the Maldives, and Bhutan are participating in the qualifier that began on December 9.

Bhutan is placed in group-A along with host Thailand, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. Bahrain, China, Hong Kong, Kuwait, and the Maldives are in Group B.

Top two teams from the qualifier will proceed to the next stage and join the teams from Nepal, Malaysia, Singapore, and the United Arab Emirates in the ICC U-19 Cricket World Cup division 1- Asia.

The Asia division-1 qualifier is slated for April next year in Malaysia and the winner will compete in the 13th edition of the ICC U-19 cricket World Cup. The winners will be one of the 16 teams that will compete in the 13th edition in South Africa in 2020.

India is today the defending champions of the championship after it won the trophy in New Zealand earlier this year. The championship is held every two years.

The ICC U19 Cricket World Cup holds an important place in the global cricket world as it often provided the first chance for young cricketers to shine on the world stage in a major international competition according to ICC.

Nima