SATV 14 April, Kathmandu: Nepal succumbed to their first defeat against Kuwait as the Rhinos were narrowly edged out by 3 runs in the final of the Hong Kong Men's Quadrangular T20I Series at Mong Kok on Sunday.
Nepal had dominated Kuwait with six- and seven-wicket victories in earlier T20 matches. Besides, Nepal failed to replicate their record-breaking run chase from April 10, where they had successfully hunted down a challenging 186-run target against the same opponent.
Sunday's encounter told a different tale as Nepal's batting unit faltered, throwing away their wickets in a lackluster display.
Chasing a target of 175 set by Kuwait at Mission Road Ground, the Rhinos lost wickets at regular intervals and were bowled out for 171 in 19.3 overs.
Despite the collapse, Basir Ahmad and Nandan Yadav showcased exceptional resilience, giving the Rhinos a glimmer of hope.
Basir anchored the innings with a scintillating 80 runs off just 43 deliveries, featuring eight boundaries and four towering sixes, while Nandan blazed away with a quickfire 37 off 14 balls, embellished with six maximums and two fours.
Nepal appeared down and out at 92/8 in the 14th over but staged a fighting comeback with a remarkable 72-run partnership between Basir and Nandan.
Nandan perished in the 18.4th over with Nepal tantalizingly close at 164/9. Entering the final over, Basir capitalized on a no-ball bowled by Anudeep Chenthamara to add seven runs, bringing Nepal within three runs of victory.
However, Basir was caught by Clinto Anto on the fourth delivery of the over, sealing Kuwait's triumph and relegating Nepal to runners-up in the tournament.
Nepal's innings unravelled from the outset, losing Kushal Bhurtel (3) in the 3rd over. Opener Aasif Sheikh briefly dazzled with 21 off 11 balls, smashing three boundaries and a six, before departing in the very next over.
A calamitous middle-order collapse saw Kushal Malla and Dipendra Singh Airee dismissed for ducks, with Airee succumbing to an LBW—the very same batter who had earlier set a world record for most innings (66) without registering a duck.
Captain Rohit Paudel (7), Sompal Kami (4), Gulshan Jha (9), and Karan KC (4) were all below par, further compounding Nepal's woes.
For Kuwait, Anudeep Chenthamara led the charge with an exceptional spell of 3/18 from 2.3 overs. Yasin Patel and Naveenraj Rajendran scalped two wickets each, while Mohamed Shafeeq and Mohammed Aslam chipped in with a wicket apiece to complete the Rhinos' rout.
Earlier in the day, Nepal's bowlers struggled to contain Kuwait's top-order batsmen after Rohit Paudel elected to bowl first.
Ravija Sandaruwan led the charge with a blistering 63 off 36 balls, smashing six boundaries and four sixes. Sandaruwan shared a solid opening stand of 49 runs with Anto, who contributed a brisk 26 off 14 balls.
Nandan Yadav made breakthroughs, dismissing Anto and Meet Bhavsar (16), while Kushal Bhurtel accounted for Usman Patel (23). Despite occasional inroads, Kuwait reached a competitive total, with skipper Mohammed Aslam remaining unbeaten on 13 and vital contributions from the lower order.
Nepal's bowlers showed flashes of brilliance, with Nandan Yadav and Sompal Kami bagging two wickets apiece and Karan KC and Kushal Bhurtel snaring one each.
In another thrilling match of the day, hosts Hong Kong clinched third place by defeating Qatar in a nail-biting one-run victory.
