Hong Kong, 31 October: India’s Hong Kong Sixes 2026 campaign ended in two defeats on Saturday. They lost their last group match to UAE, which sent them into the Bowl division, and then went down to England by three runs in the Bowl semi-final despite 56 off 14 balls from Rahul Tripathi.
India will now play Bangladesh in the playoff for 11th and 12th place. Australia and Afghanistan will meet in the Cup final.
UAE knock India out of the Cup race
UAE chose to field, and Zahid Ali took three early wickets as India slipped to 14/3. Rahul Tripathi made 24 and captain Krunal Pandya 15 off eight balls, before T Natarajan hit an unbeaten 38 off 14 with three fours and four sixes to lift India to 94/6.
UAE captain Khalid Shah and Ansh Tandon took 25 runs from the first over of the chase. Khalid made an unbeaten 52 off 14 balls with six sixes, Tandon an unbeaten 39 off 12, and UAE reached 95/0 in 4.2 overs to take their place in the Cup semi-finals.
England edge India by three runs
In the Bowl semi-final, England chose to bat and took 24 runs off Kulwant Khejroliya in the first over. Tripathi removed John Simpson with the first ball of the second over, but Martin Andersson hit 51 off 13 balls with six sixes and three fours, and Ed Barnard added an unbeaten 35 off 14. England made 124/2.
Nathan Gilchrist dismissed Nitish Rana in the first over of India’s reply. Tripathi and Shashank Singh then scored 48 runs across the second and third overs, and Tripathi went on to 56 off 14 balls with seven sixes and two fours. Krunal hit 28 off seven balls.
England struck back with the wickets of Rahul Tewatia and Shashank, and Gilchrist bowled tightly at the end. India finished on 121, three runs short.
India had lost to Pakistan in their opening group match, when Pakistan chased 89 in 3.5 overs.
Australia and Afghanistan into the Cup final
Australia beat UAE by 53 runs in the first Cup semi-final. Max Bryant hit 60 off 15 balls and Nick Hobson 53 off 11 as Australia made 141/3. UAE were held to 88/6 in 5.3 overs, with Chris Green and Alex Ross taking two wickets each.
Afghanistan beat Scotland by 21 runs in the second semi-final. Captain Gulbadin Naib made an unbeaten 51 off 16 balls and Karim Janat 37 off nine in a total of 121/4. Jack Jarvis replied with an unbeaten 54 off 17 for Scotland, but they finished on 100/3.
Earlier in the day, Afghanistan chased 121 against Oman in 5.2 overs, with Sediqullah Pacha hitting an unbeaten 45 off 10 balls, while Scotland beat Sri Lanka by 26 runs after Michael Leask’s unbeaten 70 off 15.
Bowl and Plate finals
South Africa beat Bangladesh off the last ball in the other Bowl semi-final. Habibur Rahman hit 60 off 14 balls for Bangladesh, including six sixes in a row off Blake Simpson in a 36-run over, as they made 129/4. Jorich van Schalkwyk hit 50 off 13 and, with 21 needed from the last over, struck three sixes and a four to win the game.
In the Plate semi-finals, Oman chased 93 against Sri Lanka in 4.4 overs and Pakistan beat hosts Hong Kong, China, with captain Abbas Afridi scoring 55 off 13 balls.
The finals on Sunday are Australia v Afghanistan in the Cup, England v South Africa in the Bowl and Oman v Pakistan in the Plate.
