Kathmandu, 14 Oct: In a sensational match, leg-spinner Sandeep Lamichhane took five wickets on his own, and captain Rohit Kumar Paudel scored a half-century as Nepal defeated Qatar by five runs in a thrilling encounter.
The match was played on Monday night at the Oman Cricket Academy Ground in Al Amerat, under the ICC T20 World Cup Asia and East Asia-Pacific Qualifier Super Six stage. Chasing a target of 148 runs, Qatar were bowled out for 142 runs in 19.5 overs.
For Qatar, opener Imal Liyanage scored 55 runs off 35 balls, while Zubair Ali made 52 runs, but the rest of the batting lineup failed to perform.
Nepal’s bowlers, particularly Sandeep Lamichhane, shone with the ball. He bowled 3.5 overs, conceding only 18 runs and taking five wickets. With this performance, Sandeep’s international wicket tally has reached 254, and he was named Player of the Match. Nandan Yadav took two wickets, and Dipendra Singh Airee claimed one.
Earlier, after losing the toss, Nepal were invited to bat first and scored 147 runs for the loss of nine wickets in 20 overs.
Captain Rohit Kumar Paudel top-scored with 58 runs off 41 balls, while vice-captain Dipendra Singh Airee made 26 runs off 21 balls, and Gulshan Jha added 16 runs off 8 balls. The rest of the batsmen could not contribute significantly.
For Qatar, captain Mirza Baig and Daniel Lewis took three wickets each, while Muhammad Asim took one wicket.
Earlier, Nepal had defeated the UAE by one run in their first Super Six match on Sunday. With this victory, Nepal now have six points in the Super Six stage and have moved closer to qualifying for the T20 World Cup.
Oman also have six points, and Nepal will face them on Wednesday. If Nepal defeat Oman, they will secure a place in the T20 World Cup. At a glance, Nepal can be recognized as an emerging nation in world cricket.
