The Nepalese national cricket team crashed out from the ACC Men’s Premier Cup on Friday. United Arab Emirates (UAE) progressed to the final of the tournament by defeating Nepal in the semifinal.
Nepal has been eliminated from contention for qualification to the Asia Cup 2025. The Premier Cup champion, either Oman or UAE, will secure the spot for the Asia Cup.
UAE bagged a six-wicket win in the semifinal match at Al Amerat, Oman. Chasing a tiny target of 120, UAE completed the chase in 17.2 overs losing four wickets. Opener Alishan Sharafu top-scored with an unbeaten 55 runs. He scored 55 runs from four boundaries and two sixes. Vishnu Sukumaran scored 18 whilst Haider Shah contributed 14 runs in the chase.
For Nepal, Gulshan Jha picked up two wickets whereas Lalit Rajbanshi and Sompal Kami grabbed one wicket each.
Earlier in the first innings, Nepal managed to score only 119 runs after being invited to bat first. Kushal Bhurtel was dismissed for a golden duck while Aasif Sheikh also walked for 8. Rohit Paudel was sent back for five (18 balls) whereas Kushal Malla (3) and DS Airee (5) also failed to do any special. Sundeep Jora scored the highest 50 runs for Nepal. Gulshan Jha (20) and Karan KC (17) also scored vital runs.
For UAE, Basil Hameed, Junaid Siddique and Ali Naseer grabbed two wickets each. Omid Rahman, Mohammad Farooq and Aayan Khan also picked up one wicket each.
