The UAE Under-19 women's cricket team beat Malaysia by one run in Kuala Lumpur on 29 July 2026 and won the ICC U19 Women's T20 Asia Qualifier. The result booked the only Asian place at the 2027 Under-19 Women's T20 World Cup, which Bangladesh and Nepal will host.
It came down to the last over. UAE batted first and were bowled out for 95 in 19.3 overs, with three balls unused. Malaysia needed 15 runs from the last two overs. They finished on 94 for six.
Captain Mehak Thakur was out early. Al Maseera Jahangir and Mehul Kulkarni then added 44 for the third wicket on a day when scoring was hard. Jahangir made 31 off 34 balls. Kulkarni scored 22 off 24, with three boundaries. Both fell in quick succession and the innings folded. Uttara Iyer added 19 off 18 further down the order. For Malaysia, Nur Qalysha and Irdina Beh Nabil took two wickets each.
Jahangir then took the new ball and finished with two for 12 from four overs. The ICC named her player of the match. Left-arm spinner Afsha Afzal Khan took a wicket of her own. Across the Malaysian innings, UAE conceded only three boundaries.
Malaysia's top order had given the hosts a real chase. Nur Aliya made 12 off 25 and Nazatul Hidayah Husna made 16. Nurin Imanina kept the chase alive with 36 off 40. She was dismissed off the last ball of the 19th over. Suabika Manivannan fell for 13 at the start of the final over, leaving Malaysia needing six.
Sai Nikhil Thite bowled that over. She took a wicket first ball. With three needed off the last two deliveries, Malaysia managed only a single. The one-run margin held.
The eight-team qualifier offered a single World Cup place, so every over in the final was a knockout over. UAE were unbeaten through the campaign. They beat Hong Kong China by 37 runs on the DLS method in a rain-affected opener, then beat Malaysia by 39 runs and Qatar by 81 runs in the group stage. A 73-run win over Bhutan in the semi-final put them into the decider against the hosts they had already beaten.
This will be the UAE's second appearance at the age-group World Cup. A previous side played at the first women's U19 T20 World Cup in South Africa in 2023. Several of those players are now regulars in the senior team. The U19 side missed out last time when Nepal beat them to a place through a qualifier in Ajman. Nepal are already through this time as co-hosts.
The senior women's team has come close on the biggest stage without quite getting there. They pushed Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi in 2024, then missed the 2026 tournament in England in pre-qualifying.
Senior captain Esha Oza praised the younger side. "It was a brilliant win, and a great way to get into the World Cup with a hard-fought game," she said. "There were a few heartbreaks in previous World Cup qualifiers, but I think this heals everything; going to a World Cup and playing with the best in the world."
Thakur said the group handled the pressure in the final. "I'm so pleased by how well our team dealt with the pressure in this final which led to our win," she said. "It's so exciting to qualify for the U19 Women's T20 World Cup, we are excited to get there and hopefully play as convincingly as we did during this tournament."
The World Cup field will have 16 teams. UAE earned the one Asian qualifier slot the hard way: 95 all out, then 94 for six against them, and a single off the last two balls.
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