Thai rise continues with T20 World Cup qualification

06 Sep 2019 Laura Jolly

Thailand's women's team reach the final of the T20 World Cup Qualifiers, to join Bangladesh in Australia later this summer

Thailand are set to feature in the ICC Women's T20 World Cup for the first time after securing their place in the tournament set to be held on Australian soil next February and March.

Ranked 12th on the ICC's T20 table, Thailand reached the 10-team event via a dominant eight-wicket win over Papua New Guinea in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup Qualifiers in Scotland.

The top two teams from the qualifying event advance to the tournament proper, with Bangladesh also earning a berth at the World Cup after they defeated Ireland in the other semi-final.

Pride will be on the line when Thailand and Bangladesh face off in the final at Forthill on Sunday, while the result of the decider will also determine which group the teams land in for next year's World Cup.

The victor and highest qualifier will slot into Group A alongside Australia, India, New Zealand and Sri Lanka.

The runners-up will find themselves in Group B, alongside England, West Indies, South Africa and Pakistan.

Thailand's historic journey to the T20 World Cup started when they took out the Asian region qualifiers in February this year to cement their spot at the main qualifying event.

Lanning holds on to a screamer at slip

After their arrival in Scotland, they topped Group B with three wins from as many matches – including an upset victory over Ireland, who contested the last three T20 World Cup events.

Taking on Papua New Guinea in the semi-final, they restricted their rivals to 67 before chasing their target with 15 balls to spare.

Bangladesh ensured they will feature in their fourth World Cup when they finished on top of the standings with an undefeated run of their own before restricting Ireland to 85 in the semi-final, a total they reached with four wickets in hand.

Next year's event is the first time the T20 World Cup has been held in Australia, with the women's event to be played in February and March ahead of the men's event in October.

Australia will kick off proceedings when they face India in Sydney on February 22, with matches to also be played in Perth, Canberra and Melbourne ahead of the semi-finals at the SCG on March 5.

The T20 World Cup final will be played at the MCG on March 8 – International Women's Day – with the ICC and Cricket Australia hopeful of attracting a record-breaking crowd of more than 90,000.