Aizaz, Ghazanfar, Barkat help Hong Kong dismantle Nigeria
They took two wickets each to restrict Nigeria to 81, which Hong Kong chased down with five wickets and 77 balls to spare
ESPNcricinfo staff
27-Oct-2019
Aizaz Khan celebrates after dismissing Roelof van der Merwe • Peter Della Penna
Hong Kong 82 for 5 (Kinchit 25, 1-5) beat Nigeria 81 for 8 (Onikoyi 18, Aizaz 2-15, Ghazanfar 2-11) by five wickets
Aizaz Khan, Mohammad Ghazanfar and Waqas Barkat took two wickets each to pin down Nigeria to 81 for 8 and lift Hong Kong to fourth on the Group B points table. Hong Kong knocked off the target in 7.1 overs with five wickets to spare. They have now three wins in six games and will face the loser of the Oman v Namibia playoff.* A win there will take them through to the T20 World Cup.
After opting to bat, Nigeria had a fairly decent start, reaching 27 for 0 in five overs. However, seamer Aizaz struck twice in the next over and by the tenth over they were 43 for 4. Captain Ademola Onikoyi top-scored with 18, but soaked up 35 balls before he was dismissed in the 16th over. Nigeria managed only 20 runs in their last four overs to end with an under-par 81 for 8.
In pursuit of a slim target, Hong Kong raced past fifty in the fifth over and completed the formalities soon after. Opener Nizakat Khan and No.3 Kinchit Shah both made 20s at a strike rate of over 200 to lead the chase.
In all, Nigeria scored just six boundaries in their innings. Nizakat and Kinchit alone hit nine boundaries.
*07.00GMT, October 28: This report was updated after the result of Oman v Jersey