Pakistan’s women’s cricket team advanced to the semi-finals of the Women’s Asia Cup 2026 after a commanding 72-run victory over Hong Kong in Dubai on September 7. Nashra Sandhu was the star of the match, claiming six wickets for just seven runs in her four overs, becoming the first woman to achieve a six-wicket haul in a T20 international for Pakistan.
Batting first after winning the toss, Pakistan scored 143 runs, losing eight wickets. Shawal Zulfiqar and Muniba Ali opened the innings, putting together a partnership of 23 runs off 17 balls before Muniba was dismissed for six. Zulfiqar then formed a crucial 47-run partnership with Ayesha Zafar, helping the team reach a total of 80 runs. Zulfiqar was eventually out for 47 runs, which included six boundaries, but the team struggled thereafter, losing six wickets for just 101 runs.
Captain Fatima Sana played a pivotal role in stabilizing the innings, scoring 24 runs off 24 balls, including two sixes. She added 26 runs for the seventh wicket with Tuba Hasan, who contributed 14 runs. On the bowling side, Joyleen Kaur was impressive for Hong Kong, taking four wickets for 19 runs in her four overs, while Ikra Sahar and Carrie Chan each picked up two wickets.
In response, Hong Kong crumbled under pressure, managing to score only 71 runs in 19 overs. They lost their first two wickets for just one run in the second over. Carrie Chan tried to anchor the innings with a score of 30, forming a brief partnership of 31 runs with Yasmeen Daswani, who scored 13. However, once that partnership broke, Hong Kong’s batting lineup collapsed, losing nine wickets for just 55 runs. Ruchita Venkatesh and Joyleen Kaur added some runs at the end, but it was not enough to change the outcome.
Pakistan will face Sri Lanka in the second semi-final on September 11, while the first semi-final will see India take on the winner of the Bangladesh/UAE match on September 10.