Nepal defeated Karnataka Institute of Cricket (KIC) India by 6 wickets in the SAARC Twenty20 Cup in Maldives.
After suffering a defeat in first match against Sri Lanka, Nepal displayed strong batting performance to pull up a astonishing win – thanks to half-centuries from captain Paras Khadka and vice-captain Gyanendra Malla.
Gyanendra remained unbeaten on 67 off just 21 balls with 9 sixes and Paras on 63 off 35 balls with 6 sixes scoring 114 runs in last six overs to pull up the win.
Photo Courtesy: Nepal Sports Journalists Forum
Coach Pubudu Dassanayake said the victory is a morale booster. “I am feeling very good as the boys did what we wanted to do,” he said. “The victory is a real booster for us ahead of ACC Twenty20 Cup.”
Some poor bowling, fielding and small ground helped Nepal, but nevertheless the two batsmen showed the nerves, attitude and skills to achieve a big win.
“We had the licence to play big shot as we were chasing big total,” Paras said after the match. “As we went on, we struck boundaries and sixes that boosted our confidence.”
“We could also play big shots because we knew good batsmen like Prithu Baskota and Pradeep Airee were still to come,” he added.
Opener Mahesh Chhetri (26) and Anil Mandal (31) had given solid opening stand, albeit with a little slow run rate, adding 50 runs in 7 overs.
“We needed a good start and the boys played well,” coach Dassanayake said. “After losing a couple of wickets, we planned to change the momentum and players executed it brilliantly.”
“The win was possible with the contribution of all team members,” Paras said.
Earlier, KIC, India chose to bat first. Rahul Bhatkal scored 99 not out while Nikhil Kashyap scored unbeaten 44. They scored 144 runs in second half of the innings, in 10 overs, to reach a good total after being pegged down by Paras Khadka’s 3-wicket haul.
“This is batsmen’s paradise,” Nepal’s manager Sri Niwas Rana, for whom the win was a birthday gift, said.
Prithu Baskota took a wicket for Nepal. Nepal will now play Pakistan on November 5 in the last league match of the tournament.
Brief Scorecard: KIC India: 218/4 in 20 overs (Rahul Bhatkal 99**, Nikhil Kashyap 45*, Nishanth Singh 43, Anirudh Joshi 11, Suraj Sampath 10, Paras Khadka 3/26, Prithu Baskota 1/45, FOW: 15, 30, 37, 130) lost to Nepal 222/4 in 19.3 overs (Gyanendra Malla 67*, Paras Khadka 63*, Anil Mandal 31, Mahesh Chhetri 26, Sharad 18, Nikhil Kashyap 3/40, Anish DV 1/32, FOW: 51, 69, 69, 106) by 6 wickets. MoM: Paras Khadka