Newly united Hong Kong aiming to overcome key absences on T20 World Cup mission

Deprived of the player he called “the future of Hong Kong cricket”, and also without one of the city’s greatest batsmen for the beginning of a winding 2028 T20 World Cup qualifying campaign this week, Kaushal Silva looked forward to a time when key absences were covered by oven-ready replacements from a growing talent pool.

Head coach Silva’s 14-man party for the first round of qualifiers in Malaysia features only four players from the last Hong Kong team to compete in a major tournament at the...