The tournament – the first official men’s T20I tournament staged in Thailand – started on Saturday, with the hosts suffering a three-wicket loss to Singapore. It is part of the qualifying pathway for the Asia Cup 2020, with the finalists from each region getting a chance to compete in the main qualifier.

However, according to a report in Gulf News, China, Bhutan and Myanmar all withdrew due to the coronavirus outbreak. Thailand has been badly affected by the disease, with 42 cases of Covid-19 being reported in the country at the time of writing.

A golf tournament that was set to be staged in Thailand – the 2020 LPGA Thailand – was cancelled due to the coronavirus, while the Women’s World Championship in Singapore was also cancelled.

The cornavirus outbreak has also put Ireland’s tour of Thailand in April under threat.

[caption id=”attachment_138700″ align=”alignnone” width=”800″] Hong Kong are among the five participating teams in the ACC Eastern Region T20 tournament[/caption]

Despite the withdrawal of three sides, the ACC decided to continue staging the Eastern Regional T20, with five teams now competing in it – Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Nepal and the hosts Thailand.

A total of 10 matches will be played between February 29 and March 6 at the Terdthai Cricket Ground in Bangkok.