After fighting it out in a tough World T20 qualifier stage, the competition has reached the last day of the tournament and now two interesting clashes awaits us at The Village in Malahide, Dublin, on Sunday.
The Netherlands and Scotland will battle it out in the finals of the World T20 Qualifier, whereas Hongkong and Ireland will square off to finish third in the competition. Both the matches are expected to be a close one with all four teams having come a long way through in the World T20 Qualifier, which started on 9 July.
A total of 14 teams participated in the competition and the four above-mentioned teams along with Oman and Afghanistan have qualified for the qualifying stages of the T20 World Cup in India next year.
Hence, the Netherlands are Scotland are going to play pressure-free cricket after having achieved their objective of qualifying for the mega event. However, both the teams are going to give it their all and head into the 2016 World Cup with full confidence by winning the event in Ireland.
Both the finalists have had a good run from the group stages as Scotland and the Netherlands finished first and second in Group B respectively. Both teams have had comfortable victories in the semi-finals as Scotland defeated Hongkong and the Netherlands defeated Ireland, who were one of the favourites for the competition.
The Netherlands had put up an impressive performance as they piled up 191 runs and dismissed Scotland for 159 runs. Scotland might be eying revenge, while the Dutch might be eager to come up with a repeat performance.
The World T20 Qualifier final between the Netherlands and Scotland is the second match on Sunday, while the first match of the day will be the Playoff game between Hongkong and Ireland. One can expect the crowd to turn out in numbers as the host nation will be playing.
Ireland might be hurt after failing to reach the finals and will be eager to take out their frustration on Hongkong. Both the nations played against one another in the group stage, where Hongkong emerged victorious in a close encounter, but Ireland will be eager to sign off the competition on a high.
Where to Watch Live
Hongkong vs Ireland Playoff match has been scheduled for 10am local time (2:30pm IST, 10am BST), while the all important the Netherlands vs Scotland final has been scheduled for 2:15pm local time (6:45pm IST, 2:15pm BST).
Viewers in India can watch both the matches live on Star Sports 4/HD with live streaming on starsports.com.
The UK viewers can watch the game live on Sky Sports3/HD.
