Some victories are joyous than others; and then when a victory comes as a revenge, it becomes even sweeter. Region No 4 Bhairahawa tasted a similar victory today at the TU Cricket Ground in the Wai Wai Under-19 National Cricket Tournament.
The victory not only revenged their defeat a week ago in hands of Region No 3 Kathmandu but also gave them a chance to lift the title. During league round on Oct 2, Kathmandu had defeated them to top the group by 8 wickets and they revenged the loss by winning the final by 7 wickets.
Kathmandu captain Paras Khadka chose to bat first on the wicket not used in the tournament before the match. It proved a wrong decision as the Bhairahawa bowlers kept his batsmen under immense pressure throughout the match and rarely allowed them to play free shots.
Backed by some brilliant fielding, Kathmandu’s star-studded batting lineup was bowled out in 38.1 overs for only 65 runs. Gyanendra Malla was the only one to reach the double figure. Gyanendra made 23 off 76 deliveries with one boundary.
Those stars who failed to score included: Sharad Vesawkar (1), Paras Khadka (5), Raj Shrestha (0), Dipen Shrestha (0) and Sunam Gautam (4). All these had represented national teams.
Lal Bahadur Adhikari was the most successful bowler with two wickets while three Kathmandu batsmen ran themselves out. Nirmal Simangaida, Bal Bahadur Thapa, Govind Karki, Sushan Shrestha and Sagar Khadka each claimed a wicket.
In reply, Bhairahawa played patiently. Though they lost Utsav Pant (5) in the sixth over they never showed hurry to make runs. Subash Pradhan, the wicket-keeper opener, topscored with 24 off 62 balls and was supported by Sagar Khadka (7), Antim Thapa (15) and Nirmal Simangaida (9*).
Bhairahwa won the match in 23.1 overs by eight wickets. Avay Rana, Paras Khadka and Sarad Vesawkar each took a wicket.
“We had hoped our batsmen will perform according to their caliber, but they failed,†losing captain Paras told NepalCricket.com. “The pitch was not good for batting but we should have coped with that.â€Â
Antim Thapa, the son of Bhairahawa coach Jung Bahadur Thapa, attributed the victory to the team effort. “We played according to our plan,†he said. “Bowlers did the best and fielders backed them well.â€Â
Wai Wai U-19 National Cricket Tournament
Man of the final: Subash Pradhan – Bhairahawa (Rs. 5,000)
Man of the Series: Suraj Timilsina – Birgunj (Rs. 15,000)
Best Bowler: Bantu Bataju – Kathmandu (Rs. 10,000)
Best Batsman: Akash Gupta – Bhairahawa (Rs. 10,000)