Nepal beats Netherlands by 6 wickets in the T20I Tri-Nation Series being held in Scotland. Chasing 175, Nepal completed the target in 19.4 overs losing 4 wickets.
Opener Kushal Bhurtel led from the front with a brilliant 65 off 51 balls that included 6 fours. He reached his fifty in 38 balls, marking his 11th T20I half-century in 60 matches. It was also his fourth fifty in nine T20Is against the Netherlands. Bhurtel got a life on 44 when Vikramjit Singh dropped his catch off Noah Croes.
His opening partner Aasif Sheikh scored 7 runs off 6 balls, adding 22 runs for the first wicket. Bhurtel then shared a solid 54-run stand with debutant Bhim Sharki, who made 27 off 16 balls, including 2 fours and a six. Bhim became the 52nd player to represent Nepal in T20Is and received his debut cap from Dipendra Singh Airee.
Captain Rohit Paudel couldn’t contribute much, scoring 5 off 7 balls. Bhurtel then paired with Aarif Sheikh for a 44-run partnership off 27 balls. Aarif retired hurt after scoring 39 from 23 balls with 3 fours and 2 sixes. Later, Arif and Dipendra added 27 runs in 20 balls. Dipendra remained not out on 16 from 12 balls while Lokesh Bam hit a match-winning six and stayed unbeaten on 12 off 4 balls.
Earlier, Nepal won the toss and opted to bowl. Netherlands posted 174 for 7 in 20 overs. Michael Levitt scored the highest with 86 runs from 53 balls, smashing 6 fours and 5 sixes before being caught by Rohit off Karan KC. He shared a 63-run stand in 33 balls with Zulfiqar for the fifth wicket. Zulfiqar was dismissed by Sandeep Lamichhane for 14 runs from 11 balls.
Roelof van der Merwe remained unbeaten on 36 off 21 balls, and Aryan Dutt added 17* off 18. Other Dutch batters couldn’t score in double digits. Nepal’s bowlers shared the wickets with Karan taking 2, and Sandeep, Rupesh K Singh, Lalit Rajbanshi, and Dipendra claiming one each.
With this win, Nepal beats Netherlands and climbs to the top of the table with 4 points from 3 matches, with 2 wins and 1 loss. Netherlands finish second with the same points but a lower net run rate. Scotland stays third. Nepal will play their final match of the league against Scotland on Friday. The team that finishes top after the double round-robin format will be crowned champion.
