The 2016 Asia Cup Twenty20 will be held in Bangladesh from February 24 to March 6. It will be the 13th edition of the Asia Cup, the fifth to be held in Bangladesh, and the first to be played using the T20 format.
Along with hosts Bangladesh and defending champions from the 2014 event Sri Lanka, the tournament will also include India, Pakistan and the UAE, who qualified for the tournament this past week.
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FIXTURES
(all matches at 5.30pm UAE time)
• Wednesday, February 24, India v Bangladesh
• Thursday, February 25, Sri Lanka v UAE
• Friday, February 26, Bangladesh v UAE
• Saturday, February 27, India v Pakistan
• Sunday, February 28, Bangladesh v Sri Lanka
• Monday, February 29, Pakistan v UAE
• Tuesday, March 1, India v Sri Lanka
• Wednesday, March 2, Bangladesh v Pakistan
• Thursday, March 3, India v UAE
• Friday, March 4, Pakistan v Sri Lanka
• Sunday, March 6, Final
TV coverage on OSN Sports Cricket HD
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TEAMS
Best performance: 2012 runners up
Coach: Chandika Hathurusinghe
New face to watch: Mustafizur Rahman – Hardly a brand new face, but the left arm quick bowler is still only 20. He immediately caught the eye by taking five-wicket hauls in each of his first two one-day internationals last year, and has an economy rate of 5.45 in seven T20 internationals to date. Missed the PSL in Dubai because of injury, but is in the Bangladesh squad for the Asia Cup.
Match-winner: Shakib Al Hasan – He is almost deified in Dhaka. Posters at the national cricket stadium in Mirpur declare him he world's best all-rounder. He even has a restaurant bearing his name, and containing much memorabilia from his career, in the central district of Banani. His form in the PSL for Karachi Kings was poor, but he remains the home side's top player.
Best performance: Five-time winners
Team director: Ravi Shastri
New face to watch: Jasprit Bumrah – Fresh faced is accurate. Bumrah was just five years old when Ashish Nehra, his fellow Indian pace-bowler at the Asia Cup, made his debut in the national team. MS Dhoni India's limited-overs captain, termed the tall seamer with the unorthodox action the "find of the tour" after the recent series in Australia.
Match-winner: Virat Kohli – The player of the tournament at the World Twenty20 at this same venue two years ago, and obviously a formidable force in all formats. He has a penchant for the spectacular, but his success in the shortest format usually derives from the way he minimises dot balls.
Best performance: Two-time winners
Coach: Waqar Younis
New face to watch: Mohammed Nawaz – Embellished his growing reputation with some eye-catching displays for Quetta Gladiators in the first Pakistan Super League in Dubai. A left arm spinner who bats well in the middle-order, as good a judge as Waqar Younis says he could be Pakistan's next star allrounder.
Match-winner: Umar Akmal – One of the brighter performers on the tour of New Zealand for Pakistan, and an outstanding PSL in Dubai and Sharjah. His 335 runs arrived at an average of 83.57 and a strike-rate of 157.27, as he carried an otherwise under-performing Lahore Qalanders side.
Best performance: Five-time winners
Coach: Graham Ford
New face to watch: Dushmantha Chameera – Said to be the fastest bowler in Sri Lanka, the wider cricket public got their first real glimpse of what he is capable of when he played against India in a warm up series last month. His smooth, athletic bowling caught the eye, as did his gymnastic fielding, particularly when taking a diving caught and bowled to dismiss Rohit Sharma in Ranchi.
Match-winner: Thisara Perera – The big-hitting allrounder has established himself as a T20 gun-for-hire, as evidenced by the fact he has been contracted to five different IPL franchises over the years. He has happy memories of the national stadium in Mirpur, the ground where the Asia Cup will be played. He hit the winning runs - a trademark six - when Sri Lanka won the World T20 there in 2014.
Best performance: Group stage in 2004 and 2008
Coach: Aaqib Javed
New face to watch: Mohammed Usman – One of the newcomers to the national team over the past year tasked with filling the void of the retired pillars of the middle-order. A left-hander with a neat technique rather than a power game, he might benefit from the greater pace on the ball the bowlers from the Test nations will provide.
Match-winner: Amjad Javed – Despite an exacting work schedule with his day job, and the fact he is nearing his 36th birthday, the new UAE captain is a bundle of infectious energy. He has led the national team's revival over the past week with the ball, and won the game against Hong Kong by hitting the first ball he faced for a straight six.
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