In a match replete with records, Nepal thrashed lowly Bhutan by 281 runs at the Royal Selangor Club Ground in the ACC Trophy 2006 Wednesday.
Paras Khadka, Mahesh Chhetri and Gyanendra Malla scored half-centuries to help Nepal reach 317/8 in 50 overs  Nepal’s highest score abroad  and then bowled out Bhutan for 36 in 18.5 overs. Captain Binod Das led with example taking five wickets and man of the match award.
Royal Selangor has been lucky for Nepal as this is the second time the team has surpassed 300 runs  the first one being 304/6 against Italy in the World Cup Qualifying Series Division II a year ago. This is also the biggest win for Nepal in the ACC Trophy.
Individually, Mehboob Alam became the first Nepali to take 50 wickets in international one-day when he took the first wicket in the match. He has now 52 wickets from 29 matches at an average of 9.38. Mahesh Chhetri became the second Nepali cricketer to score a half-century on senior debut after Gyanendra who got his second today in his second one-day match.
After electing to bowl first, Bhutan got the taste of what was to come as Gyanendra and Paresh Lohani once again gave a good start adding 67 runs before Paresh was out for 27 runs off 37 balls with five fours.
Off-spinner Tandin Wangchuk broke the partnership and then another off-spinner Phuntsho Wangdi dismissed Sharad Vesawkar and Shakti Gauchan in two balls to bring Bhutan back to the game making it 73/3 in 14.3 overs. Sharad tried to hit a high full toss over the mid-wicket but connected with the bottom of his bat to give Damber Singh Gurung a catch. Wangdi then bowled Shakti the next ball as the latter played the wrong line.
Hard-hitting Mehboob Alam then hit three fours and two consecutive sixes and partnered Gyanendra for 69 runs before the youngster was trapped leg-before by a sharply turning ball. Gyanendra by then had completed his second fifty in two matches scoring 52 off 81 deliveries with four boundaries and a six.
Mehboob followed soon being trapped with a low ball by Gurung for 39 off 32 balls finally giving way to Paras. The youngster was at his best as he played a chanceless innings of 87 runs  four short of the best by any Nepali in ACC Trophy. He could have passed Kiran Agrawal’s 91 had he not been caught at mid-wicket boundary after hitting four sixes and seven fours.
Paras was well supported by Basanta Regmi (18) and then by Mahesh Chhetri, the reserve wicket-keeper batting at No 10. Mahesh started slowly but then went on to score aggressively as he reached his fifty with four boundaries and two sixes in just 35 balls. He remained unbeaten on 56 off 37 balls.
The target of 318 was a big ask for Bhutan and the new ball pair of Mehboob and Binod made it even difficult. Mehboob trapped Tashi leg before with the fifth ball of the first over while Binod took two in the fourth over of the match and then one each in the sixth and eighth overs to make it 11/5. Mehboob added two more to finish at 3/10 while Binod took 5/24  the second time he has taken five-wickets in a one-dayer. Shakti wrapped it up in the 19th over taking the last two wickets.
“I feel lucky because of the weather,” coach Roy Dias said after the win referring to the Malaysia-Brunei match that was called off due to rain. Nepal’s match too was disrupted twice for 10 minutes each.” Nepal will now meet Hong Kong at Kilat Club on Saturday.