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Papua New Guinea (PNG)
will play Fiji in the final of the ICC World Cup Qualifying Series
Division 2 tournament in Malaysia on Sunday, with the winner
guaranteed the final qualifying spot at the ICC Trophy 2005.
The two East
Asia-Pacific sides beat Asian opposition in their semi-finals on
Friday and both go into the final unbeaten in the eight-team
tournament.
PNG secured its
place in the final with a 36-run victory over Qatar. Batting first,
PNG made 259 for 9 in 50 overs. Qatar’s
reply was checked by accuracy of the PNG bowling, particularly the
left-arm medium pace of Toka
Gaudi, and they were all out for 224 in
48.5 overs.
Gaudi
picked up the first hattrick of the
tournament and was named Man of the Match.
“I was very pleased
with the way that I bowled today and I think it was a great team
effort in the field,” said Gaudi.
“It has been
tremendous to win all of our matches but the final is the important
one. There is a bit of local rivalry between us and Fiji and it
promises to be a great game with a lot at stake.”
Fiji reached the
final with a thrilling three-run victory over Nepal. After restricting
Fiji to 143 for 8 in 50 overs, Nepal
stuttered badly in reply, losing crucial early wickets. A spirited
ninth wicket stand took Nepal to the verge of victory but, with ten
overs still available, they lost their
final wicket three runs short of the target.
PNG and Fiji are
the two strongest teams in the East Asia-Pacific region and the local
rivalry adds an extra element of intrigue to the final of the ICC WCQS
Division 2 event.
The two sides last
played in the final of the 2003 South Pacific Games in Fiji, with PNG
winning a rain-affected game on the last ball. Fiji last beat PNG in a
full international in 2001.
The winner of
Sunday’s final at the Royal Selangor Club
will claim the final place in the 12-team ICC Trophy 2005 in Ireland
from 1-13 July. The ICC Trophy 2005 will determine the final five
qualifying places at the ICC Cricket World Cup West Indies 2007. |
