UAE stay perfect at top of Group B with slam of Bahrain in ACC Twenty20 Cup

Abdul Shakoor led the UAE attack, striking an 84 off 45 balls to help them remain undefeated in four matches and atop the Group B standings at the ACC Twenty20 Cup in Nepal.

UAE cricketer Abdul Shakoor helped the national team beat Bahrain.
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A quick-fire 84 off 45 balls from opener Abdul Shakoor was the highlight for the UAE as they continued their winning ways at the ACC Twenty20 Cup in Nepal on Sunday.

UAE thrashed Bahrain by 114 runs at Kirtipur to ensure they finished at the top of Group B with four wins out of four.

Their reward is a semi-final pairing against Nepal at Tribhuvan with the winner going through to Wednesday's final, where either Afghanistan or Hong Kong await.

Given their form against Bahrain, the UAE will be confident of going on to win the event.

Shakoor set the tone for the victory with a spectacular display after captain Ahmed Raza had elected to bat.

He struck 11 boundaries, and five sixes, in his innings and had moved the score onto 132 when he was dismissed in the 11th over.

But there was no respite for the Bahraini bowlers as Mohammad Azam (47 not out) and Rohan Mustafa (35) continued the onslaught.

Azam struck four boundaries and two sixes in the 26 balls he faced, and there were three maximums for Mustafa along with one four as the UAE reached 226 for five in their 20 overs.

It was too much for Bahrain in reply, and after Wasim Bari (one for 21) had struck with the ninth ball of the innings for the UAE, the Bahrainis struggled.

Five UAE bowlers picked up wickets in all, with Adil Reyal (two for 27) the pick of the attack as they restricted their opponents to 112 for eight.

The top two in the ACC Cup are guaranteed a spot at the World Cup Qualifier, to be played in the UAE in November.

The UAE already have a spot in the event as a result of being the host nation, so they can focus purely on winning the competition.

Tuesday's opponents, Nepal, were also big winners yesterday, thrashing Singapore by 121 runs in their final Group A game.

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