Matches in the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup Europe Sub-regional Qualifier C continued in Kerava and Tikkurila. A total of eight matches were played on Monday and Tuesday, some of which were decisive for the outcome of the tournament.
Finland played their third match of the tournament and beat Luxembourg by 73 runs in an impressive manner on Tuesday morning’s fixture. The Bears secured their second consecutive victory of the tournament and are looking to progress to the third-place play-off.
The home team won the toss and opted to bat first. Faheem Nellancheri was promoted to be an opener and got Finland off to a flying start. However, he was dismissed early, after which Finland’s innings stagnated for a while. Aravind Mohan and Faraaz Mehti Abbas (38 runs) managed to overcome Luxembourg’s challenges and got Finland’s innings back on track. Mohan scored his 2nd half-century of the tournament with 52 runs before he was dismissed. Nicholas Salonen added 23 valuable runs and Finland ended up with 168 runs for 9 wickets.
Among the Luxembourg bowlers, spin bowlers Mayank Nagayach and Vivek Dixit made an impression, as both picked up two scalps. Right-arm quick Kamal Soukhiya also chipped in with three wickets.
In the second half of the match, Finland’s bowlers were too good for the Luxembourg batters, who managed to score only 95 runs. Captain Amjad Sher’s and Junaid Khan’s fast bowling was top-class, earning the pair three wickets. They were accurate and fast, putting Luxembourg under immense pressure right from the get-go. The spinners followed suit with more good work and saw the match through to the end. Of them, Madhawa Basnayaka caused the most problems by picking up four wickets with his accuracy.
Finland’s tournament continues against the Isle of Man on Thursday at the Kerava National Cricket Ground. The match holds a lot of weight, as the winner will progress to the third-place play-off, which will be played on Friday and start at 11 am.
Result: Finland 168/9 (20) – Luxembourg 95/10 (17.2), Finland won by 73 runs
Player of the match: Aravind Mohan 52 (37)
Other matches:
Spain, who are in Finland’s group, secured their place in the tournament’s final by beating Luxembourg on Monday and Bulgaria on Tuesday. Both victories were comprehensive, with the Spanish side excelling with both bat and ball.
Spain’s opponent for the final will be decided on Thursday, when Portugal face Czechia. If Portugal win the match, they will progress to the final and meet their neighbors. If Czechia beat Portugal, Spain will take on Germany instead in the final. The final will be played on Friday afternoon in Kerava, where the winner will advance to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier and join Scotland, Jersey, and Denmark.
Author
Safi Khan
