Saudi Arabia registered its second straight win in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier after beating Cambodia by five wickets in Qatar on Monday.

Opener Faisal Khan scored his maiden T20I century as the Kingdom chased down a target of 162 runs with 28 balls remaining.

Faisal is the second Saudi player to score a century in the tournament, following his elder brother Abdul Waheed, who scored a century in the first match against Bahrain and also happens to be his opening partner.

Against Cambodia, Faisal completed his half-century in just 20 balls, with 22 runs coming off the last four balls of Shah Abrar Hussain’s fifth over. Faisal’s blitzkrieg innings meant Saudi Arabia was 86-0 at the end of six overs.

Faisal and Abdul shared a 116-run partnership for the first wicket in just 9.5 overs as Saudi Arabia started off well. Abdul was stumped for 34 runs off Chadha, a dismissal that left Faisal fuming. Even though the chase was half done, Faisal felt it would have been special to share the moment of his century with his elder brother.

He was batting on 81 when Abdul returned to the pavilion. Faisal needed six more balls to reach three figures as he hit a six off Gireesh when on 94. Faisal was caught out on the last ball of the same over, ending with 101 runs off 42 balls. He hit six fours and 10 sixes in his innings. Faisal is only the third Saudi player to score a century in T20Is, after Waji Ul Hasan’s 115 not out vs. Bhutan in February 2024 and elder brother Abdul’s 110 vs. Bahrain last Tuesday.

Faisal said that the moment would have been even more special had Abdul been with him at the other end. “I was very angry when he got out and the way he got dismissed. I was hitting the ball well, so, he just needed to occupy the crease and be with me. We have come through a lot, and had he been there, it would have been even more special,” he told Arab News.

He feels it is easier to bat with his brother at the other end. “We play for Pak Shaeens back in Saudi Arabia, so, there is an understanding in the game. We have started playing together too, and whenever he is around, I am comfortable. It feels like my brother will make it right if something goes wrong from my end,” he added.

Elder brother Waheed was happy to see Faisal back in form and said it was a proud moment for the family. “The moment he got to the century was special, even though I was clapping from the pavilion. I know he feels comfortable talking and batting with me, as we share feedback consistently. It is a proud moment for our family that both of us have scored centuries. I hope we can contribute similarly to our team’s success in the coming days,” he said.

Saudi Arabia needed only 21 runs when Faisal was out. They lost two more wickets but were safely home in the 16th over. Faisal said that the team was looking for a big win from ball one, as they had an eye on the run rate.

“We needed to win big to stay in the hunt for qualification, and hitting the ball was the approach from ball one. The ball was coming well off my bat, and I just kept using powerplay restrictions to my advantage. I knew we could chase the total within 14-15 overs,” he said.

Earlier in the day, Cambodia put up 161 runs for six wickets in their 20 overs after being invited to bat first at the University of Doha for Science and Technology ground. Lakshit Gupta top-scored with 62 runs off 45 balls, hitting four fours and three sixes. Uday Hathinjar added 16 runs and Luqman Butt contributed 26 runs, helping to build the score. Mahaj Chadha also played well toward the end, scoring 24 runs not out.

Cambodia had two strong partnerships at the start, with Hathinjar and Gupta adding 46 runs in five overs. Luqman stayed with Gupta to reach 109 in the 14th over, but the wickets tumbled at regular intervals thereafter. Ishtiaq Ahmad and Usman Najeeb took two wickets each for Saudi Arabia.

After losing the first two matches against Bahrain and the UAE, Saudi Arabia has won three consecutive games, putting the side back in the frame for qualification. The top two teams from this seven-team qualifier will qualify for the regional final, which serves as a pathway for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup to be held in 2026.

Saudi Arabia is fourth in the table with four points and will face third-place Thailand, who have six points. The UAE and Qatar, who face each other on Tuesday, are both unbeaten and have eight points from four matches. Bahrain also has four points but is behind Saudi Arabia in net run rate. Cambodia and Bhutan are at the bottom without any points.

Saudi Arabia is facing Thailand on Tuesday and will face Qatar on Thursday, which could be a winner-takes-all match to get to the qualifier. Faisal is focused on the match against Thailand, taking the remaining matches as two finals.

“We know how important the match against Qatar is going to be, but first, we are focused on the Thailand match. We will try to give our best to get the win and then only think about Qatar. A win is the only result that will take us forward, so, we are determined to make it happen. To get better matches, to improve our ranking and to make ourselves better, we need to win the two finals from here,” he added.

Faisal feels that the tournament is very important for the development of the sport in the Kingdom, too. “If we go through to the qualifiers, we will have more programs. Right now, there are no turf pitches for us to train on, which is why we find it hard in the first matches. Getting to the next round will only aid our development phase, and we are hopeful of achieving it,” he said.

For the final round of regional qualifiers, Malaysia and Kuwait have already booked their spots from the Asia Group A qualifier, while Samoa and Japan are representing the East Asia-Pacific region. Nepal, Oman and Papua New Guinea will also compete in the regional finals as they qualified for the 2024 edition of the T20 World Cup, held in the US and West Indies.

JEDDAH: With the stage set for the much-anticipated Indian Premier League mega auction, the bidding war began at the Abadi Al-Johar Arena in Jeddah on Sunday, where the squads of the 10 franchises will be finalized over two days from a pool of 574 players.

Jay Shah, secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India and chairman-elect of the apex cricket body, the International Cricket Council, arrived in the Red Sea city of Jeddah ahead of the TATA IPL 2025 auction.

“This marks Saudi Arabia’s first-ever international cricket event, set to take place on November 24-25, 2024,” the Saudi Arabian Cricket Federation said in a statement to Arab News.

Shah was warmly received at the airport by Prince Saud bin Mishal Al-Saud, chairman of SACF, along with Vice Chairman Nawaf Al-Otaibi and CEO Tariq Sagga.

A number of investors, franchise representatives and officials from the BCCI also arrived in Jeddah in preparation for the highly anticipated auction, which is a key event in the global cricket calendar.

“This historic event marks a new chapter for cricket in Saudi Arabia, as the Kingdom continues to strengthen its position on the global sports stage, in line with its Vision 2030,” SACF said.

The IPL will enter its 18th season next year, and the Red Sea City is an important stop en route, where the squads of the ten franchises — Chennai Super Kings, Delhi Capitals, Gujarat Titans, Kolkata Knight Riders, Lucknow Super Giants, Mumbai Indians, Punjab Kings, Rajasthan Royals, ‎Royal Challengers Bengaluru, and Sunrisers Hyderabad — will be finalized at the mega auction.

After the news of the mega auction to be held at an overseas venue came out, the names of Dubai, London, Riyadh and Jeddah started doing the rounds before the Red Sea City was finalized by the BCCI for the marquee event.

The Abadi Al-Johar Arena, named after the famous Saudi singer, and which has seating capacity of 15,000, hosts the mega event, where the squads of the 10 franchises will be finalized.

Out of a stellar list of marquee players featuring in the TATA IPL auction, Indian pacer Arshdeep Singh raked in the money, becoming the first player to be sold in the Jeddah IPL auction. He received $2.13 million as Punjab Kings used their right-to-match card to beat Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Star India player Rishabh Pant became the most expensive player in the history of the Indian Premier League as Lucknow Super Giants spent a mind-boggling $3.19 million on the wicketkeeper-batter.

The ten franchises are gunning to set their team for the next few years; on Day 1, however, only 84 top cricketers will go under the hammer. On Day 2, the 10 franchises will nominate a set of players who will be auctioned in an accelerated manner, followed by the last round, where the unsold players will be back for auction again.
 
Unlike regular auctions, the mega auction that takes place every three years is spread over two days instead of one. It is one of the most-followed events in cricket, as the ten IPL franchises build their squads for the next three years (2025-27).

As the Tata IPL auction, cricket’s most lucrative event, takes place in Jeddah, franchise representatives will spend more than $71 million across two days.

The Tata IPL 2025 mega auction will see plenty of twists, turns, unexpected signings and records broken, as the availability of Indian and international stars is greater than ever and all ten franchises are looking to rebuild their squads from the start.

A total of 12 marquee players, including Indian stars such as Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul, have created a buzz within the cricket fraternity. Players have been shortlisted from an initial pool of 1,574 names.

These players will go under the hammer over the two-day mega auction in Jeddah. The list includes 208 overseas players, 12 uncapped overseas talents and 318 uncapped Indian players, according to the cricket reference book Wisden.