The second edition of the Asia Pacific Cup is set to begin tomorrow, with six of the top 11 countries in the world playing at Blacktown International Sportspark in Sydney, Australia. World No. 2 Japan, No. 6 Chinese Taipei, No. 7 Australia, No. 8 China, No. 9 Italy and No. 11 New Zealand will play a three-day round robin to begin the WBSC sanctioned tournament. A second team from Australia will join the six National Teams in the competition.
The Asia Pacific Cup will be a good taste of what is expected to be one of the most memorable softball year, with the Olympic Softball Qualifiers, especially for the eight-team Asia/Oceania tournament, to be held in Shanghai, China, from 24-29 September, with the winner advancing to Tokyo 2020. The four top ranked teams from the Asia/Oceania Olympic Qualifier will face each other in Sydney this weekend (Japan is already qualified to the Olympics as hosts).
The only out-of-region National Team in the Asia Pacific Cup will be Italy, tunning-up for the Europe/Africa Olympic Qualifier in Utretch, Netherlands, from 23-28 July. Only one nation will advance to Tokyo 2020 from this event.
The semifinals and final of the Asia Pacific Cup will be live boradcasted by Fox Sports Australia on 3 February, kicking off a seven day marathon of softball in TV. The Asia Pacific Cup will be followed by three days of the inaugural Summer Slam – Fully Loaded Softball series from 4 – 6 February, culminating in the Australian men’s National Team competing in New Zealand for the TAB Challenge Cup from 8 – 10 February. All matches will be broadcast on FOX SPORTS Australia.
The Asia Pacific Cup final will also be seen live in Brunei, Cambodia, China, East Timor, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Macau, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam through FOX SPORTS Asia.
SKY NZ will also take the Asia Pacific Cup and Summer Slam coverage to New Zealand’s softball fans.
Last year Japan defeated hosts Australia, 3-0, to claim the title. The game was broadcasted live in Asia and Oceania via Fox Sports, potentially reaching millions of viewers.
ASIA PACIFIC CUP FULL ROSTERS
SCORES AND STATS
ASIA PACIFIC CUP 2019 SCHEDULE
Thursday, January 31, 201
| Time |
Field |
Match |
| 11:00 |
D1 |
CHN |
v |
NZL |
| 11:00 |
D2 |
TPE |
v |
JPN |
| 13:30 |
D1 |
CHN |
v |
JPN |
| 13:30 |
D2 |
ITA |
v |
AUS A |
| 16:00 |
D1 |
AUS Travelodge Aussie Spirit |
v |
NZL |
| 16:00 |
D2 |
TPE |
v |
AUS A |
| 18:30 |
D1 |
OPENING CEREMONY |
| 19:30 |
D1 |
AUS Travelodge Aussie Spirit |
v |
ITA |
Friday, February 1, 2019
| Time |
Field |
Match |
| 11:00 |
D1 |
JPN |
v |
AUS A |
| 13:30 |
D1 |
ITA |
v |
TPE |
| 13:30 |
D2 |
JPN |
v |
NZL |
| 16:00 |
D1 |
AUS Travelodge Aussie Spirit |
v |
AUS A |
| 16:00 |
D2 |
ITA |
v |
CHN |
| 18:30 |
D2 |
NZL |
v |
TPE |
| 20:00 |
D1 |
AUS Travelodge Aussie Spirit |
v |
CHN |
Saturday, February 2, 2019
| Time |
Field |
Match |
| 11:00 |
D1 |
NZL |
v |
ITA |
| 13:30 |
D1 |
CHN |
v |
TPE |
| 13:30 |
D2 |
NZL |
v |
AUS A |
| 16:00 |
D1 |
AUS Travelodge Aussie Spirit |
v |
TPE |
| 16:00 |
D2 |
JPN |
v |
ITA |
| 18:30 |
D2 |
CHN |
v |
AUS A |
| 20:00 |
D1 |
AUS Travelodge Aussie Spirit |
v |
JPN |
Sunday, February 3, 2019
| Time |
Field |
Match |
| 9:00 |
D3 |
Sixth |
v |
Seventh |
| 11:30 |
TBD |
First |
v |
Fourth |
| 11:30 |
TBD |
Second |
v |
Third |
| 11:30 |
D3 |
Fifth |
v |
Winner (6 v 7) |
| 14:00 |
D1 |
Winner (1 v 4) |
v |
Winner (2 v 3) |
