Zeeshan Ali said Hong Kong were aching to escape the backwaters of Challenge League cricket and “show what we are capable of” on the world stage.

Hong Kong begin the latest three-year Challenge League B cycle with five one-day matches over the next nine days in Uganda.

Head coach Simon Willis and captain Nizakat Khan have united to emphasise the importance of the competition, which provides a potential gateway to Hong Kong recapturing their one-day international status and all the benefits that would bring for the city’s players and administrators.

Swashbuckling opening batsman Ali was one of three players, along with Nizakat and spin-bowler Ehsan Khan, who dashed to East Africa from the Hong Kong Cricket Sixes, which finished on Sunday, for their team’s first game against Bahrain on Thursday.

They meet Italy two days later and face the hosts the following day. Games against Tanzania and Singapore follow next Tuesday and Friday, respectively.

A player who has enjoyed a late-career renaissance after claiming the wicketkeeper’s gloves following Willis’s appointment in March 2023, Ali acknowledged Challenge League audiences were typically limited to cricket diehards.