Right, so Afghanistan turning over Bangladesh in the Asia cup was what, a colossal aligning of the planets? And taking Pakistan to the last ball of a T20 last year? Give it a rest. They're better than an ECB Prem side, no problems. Considering that 6 years ago they were down in the doldrums of the World Cricket Division 7 (or something about that level) I'd say that they're above that. Try following some of the associate cricketers on twitter, one (Rory Gribbell - French opening bowler) has been stating all day that Associate cricket is of a much higher standard than ECB Prems, and he's played both. Irfan Ahmed is clocking about 87mph, which I'm fairly sure is quicker than almost anything outside of professional/minor county cricket, and Hamid Hassan hits 85-90 usually. For a bloke who's supposed to have played a high level of cricket, you're showing a fair amount of ignorance on the subject of associate nations... Don't get me wrong, they can't compete with the full members every game, and they are just getting used to the big stage, but Sri Lanka didn't start overly well when they came into the test arena and look where they are now.
I dont want to say "I told you so" but read the following from the Hong Kong Captain ......
"We're training four or five times a week then playing games at the weekend," said Atkinson, who was born in Hong Kong to English parents. "We can also get away on tour whenever we're needed."
Former Durham University student Atkinson likens the
standard of Hong Kong's top cricket competition to that of club Premier League cricket in the UK.