Nepal defeated Canterbury Selection XI by eight wickets in its first practice match at Burnside Park in Christchurch, New Zealand on Thursday as opener Anil Mandal blasted unbeaten 99 runs off 93 balls.
According to simapari.com.au, pacer Sompal Kami and spinner Sagar Pun claimed four wickets each to bundle out Canterbury Selection at 204 runs in 49.3 overs. In reply, Mandal and Vice-captain Gyanendra Malla put up a 129-run partnership to take Nepal to 207/2 in 33.2 overs.
Anil Mandal plays a shot. (Photo Courtesy: Facebook page -Nepal National Cricket Team in NZ 2014)
Pun, who bowled nine overs in the match, kept an over maiden and gave away only 26 runs. Meanwhile, Kami’s bowling figure was 9.3-1-39-4. Basant Regmi dismissed two batsmen of Canterbury Selection.
J Case garnered 88 runs off 95 balls for Canterbury Selection before Binod Bhandari caught him off Kami’s bowling. Openers SJC Keen (47 runs) and J Abraham (21 runs) were the other major contributors for the home team.
Chasing the modest total, Nepali openers Subash Khakurel and Mandal put up a 60-run partnership. C Cooper caught Khakurel in the 13th over bowled by H Paterson. Khakurel scored 31 runs off 42 balls including five boundaries.
Then, Mandal and Malla put up the biggest partnership of the match. Malla was trapped LBW by SJC Keen in the 33rd over. Malla struck 51 runs off 64 balls including four boundaries and two sixes.
Skipper Paras Khadka scored unbeaten five runs off two balls to seal the victory when Mandal remain unbeaten at a run short off a century. Mandal clobbered nine boundaries and three sixes.
“I think bowlers did a very good job and openers gave good start and Anil (Mandal) batted exceptionally well. Later, Gyanendra (Malla) batted very well,” said skipper Khadka in an interview to Nepal National Cricket Team in NZ 2014, a facebook page handled by Nepali cricket fans in New Zealand. “We are pretty happy to win the first game. Everybody is looking in good touch. We hope to continue the good form,” Khadka added.
Nepal has reached New Zealand to play ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers almost two weeks ahead of the tournament to acclimatize in the condition. Nepal will play some more practice matches with Canterbury Selection XI before taking on Namibia on January 10 and Kenya on the next day in the official warm-up matches ahead of the qualifiers that will be held from January 16 to February 1 in New Zealand.
Nepal is drawn alongside the UAE, Scotland, Canada and Hong Kong in the group A of the qualifiers of the 50-over (One-Dayers) World Cup. Netherlands, Papua New Guinea, Kenya, Namibia and Uganda are drawn in the group B.
Top three teams of both the groups will progress to the second round, super six play-offs. The top two teams at the end of the Super-Six stage will progress to the final and earn the two much-coveted places at the ICC CWC 2015.