Afghanistan have qualified for the Under-19 World Cup after going unbeaten through the ACC Under-19 Premier League tournament in Kuwait. They played their last match on Saturday, hammering the hosts by 206 runs, their third 200 plus win in the tournament. Their final net run rate of +4.533 only serves to demonstrate their dominance.
Nepal, the only team to really challenge the Afghans, finished the tournament as runners-up, completing a 94 run win over the United Arab Emirates on Saturday. Their hopes of reaching the World Cup - to be played in Bangladesh in 2016 - are not yet over though, as they will enter a repechage tournament with the runners-up from the other four ICC regions from which the winners will also qualify.
The tournament concluded yesterday with the UAE beating Malaysia by 76 runs to secure third place, and Saudi Arabia beating Kuwait by 3 wickets to ensure that the hosts finished last without winning a game.
With the ACC Championship now cancelled, this concludes the slate of ACC tournaments for 2014. Afghanistan have also won the Under-16 Elite League and the senior ACC Premier League, confirming their position as the top associate side in the region.