History was created during the UAEโs opening fixture in the 2026 ACC Womenโs Premier Cup, where they overwhelmed Saudi Arabia in Malaysia. The Esha Oza-led side began their T20 Asia Cup qualifying campaign in record-setting fashion, registering the second joint-biggest win in womenโs T20Is.ย
Notably, Saudi Arabia were bundled for just 27 runs in 15.3 overs after a relentless bowling effort that left little room for resistance. The UAE attack shared wickets across key spells, with Suraksha Kotte returning 3/5, Heena Hotchandani claiming 3/4, and captain Esha finishing with figures of 3-9.
The chase that followed was completed in minimal time, with the UAE needing only five legal deliveries to reach the target. They didnโt lose any wickets either. With that, UAE are now placed among a rare group in womenโs T20 internationals to finish a pursuit so quickly in terms of balls faced, with only Rwanda, Tanzania and Thailand having achieved faster wins requiring four legal deliveries.
Fastest wins in women’s T20Is (by balls):
| Team | Target Chased | Overs taken | Opponent |
| Rwanda | 7 | 0.4 overs | Mali |
| Tanzania | 12 | 0.4 overs | Mali |
| Thailand | 10 | 0.4 overs | Phillipines |
| Nepal | 17 | 0.5 overs | Maldives |
| UAE | 28 | 0.5 overs | Saudi Arabia |
There was additional context to the fixture, as the same opposition had been on the receiving end of the UAEโs previous quickest victory, which came in the Gulf Championship in Oman four years earlier. On that occasion, the match concluded with one ball remaining in the second over. The latest encounter, however, saw an even more decisive outcome.
Captain Esha led from the front
Meanwhile, Esha is a two-time ICC associate cricketer of the year and led from the front once again, contributing unbeaten 15 runs off five deliveries at the top of the order. Her opening partner, Theertha Satish, faced a single delivery and struck it for a boundary, while extras also added to the brief chase, including 10 wides and a no-ball.
The match eventually ended with 19.1 overs remaining, which only shows UAEโs utter dominance in the match and it will also boost their Net Run Rate, which stands at 34.650 after the opening game of the tournament.
Now, even though the win will give the team plenty of confidence for the upcoming 2026 Womenโs T20 Asia Cup, the job is not yet done. They continue their campaign against Oman in their next fixture on Thursday.
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