UAE qualify for ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup 2027 after dramatic one-run win over Malaysia

The UAE booked their place at the ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup 2027 by defeating hosts Malaysia by one run in a thrilling Asia Qualifier final. The unbeaten campaign secured the region’s lone qualification berth for the global tournament in Nepal and Bangladesh

Hyderabad: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) have secured their place at the ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup 2027 after edging hosts Malaysia by just one run in a thrilling final of the ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup 2027 Asia Qualifier at the Bayuemas Oval in Kuala Lumpur.

The nail-biting victory capped an outstanding unbeaten campaign for the UAE, who emerged from the eight-team competition that began on 23 July to claim the region’s sole qualification berth for the third edition of the tournament. The global event, to be co-hosted by Nepal and Bangladesh in 2027, will feature 16 teams competing for the coveted title.

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The UAE’s route to qualification was marked by a series of commanding per,formances. They opened their campaign with a 37-run victory over Hong Kong China via the DLS method in a rain-affected encounter before defeating Malaysia by 39 runs and Qatar by 81 runs in the league stage. They then booked their place in the final with a comprehensive 73-run win over Bhutan in the semi-finals before holding their nerve to defeat Malaysia by the narrowest of margins in a memorable final.

Having completed the tournament without defeat, the UAE now join the field for the ICC U19 Women’s T20 World Cup 2027, where they will compete alongside 15 other teams. The tournament, which was first staged in South Africa in 2023, has been won by India both times.

In the final, the UAE’s Al Maseera Jahangir delivered a match-winning all-round performance to earn the Player of the Match award. Jahangir top-scored with 31 from 34 balls before producing an outstanding spell with the ball, returning figures of two for 12 from her four overs to help seal the dramatic one-run victory.

UAE captain Mehak Thakur said: “I’m so pleased by how well our team dealt with the pressure in this final which led to our win. It’s so exciting to qualify for the U19 Women’s T20 World Cup, we are excited to get there and hopefully play as convincingly as we did during this tournament.