Nepal has registered their first win against Scotland, ending a 4-0 losing streak in List A cricket. Nepal stunned the hosts by 5 wickets chasing the mere total of 145 at Titwood Cricket Ground, Glasgow.
Kushal Bhurtel and Aasif Sheikh yielded a fine start for Nepal adding 47 runs for the first wicket. First inning’s superstar Gavin Main dismissed Bhurtel for 27 runs before Dev Khanal walked back for 4 runs. Aasif and Rohit Paudel then added 47 runs for the third wicket.
Aasif counter-attacked the Scottish bowlers and scored scintillating 71 runs from 62 balls, hammering 10 fours and one six before being dismissed by Main himself. Nepal then lost Dipendra Singh Airee and Aarif Sheikh in quick succession but it was too late for Scotland. Rohit Paudel scored the winning boundary in 26th over and remained unbeaten for 34 runs from 31 balls.
Gavin Main picked up 3 wickets for the losing side, and Adrien Neil and Richie Berrington also pocketed one wicket each.
Earlier in the first inning, Nepal wrapped up Scotland for mere 144 runs after choosing to bowl first. Gavin Main’s courageous half-century helped Scotland post a fighting total after losing 9 wickets for just 95 runs.
Nepal who are yet to defeat Scotland in ODI, had a dream start, picking up 5 wickets for 33 runs after opting to bowl first at Titwood Cricket Ground, Glasgow. Sompal Kami dismissed Matthew Cross in the second over, Karan Kc and Sompal himself sent back dangerous Calum MacLeod (13) and Kyle Coetzer (6) respectively in two balls span. Aadil Aalam later joined the party on the green turf, dismissing George Munsey in his first ball of the match. At the same time, Sompal grabbed his third wicket in the next over sending skipper Berrington back to the pavilion.
Scotland then added 111 runs for the next five wickets with Gavin Main scoring blistering 64* runs from just 59 balls coming at number 9. This is Main’s best batting performance in his ODI career, previously scoring a total of 18 runs from nine matches with the highest score of 13*. He added 49 runs with Hamza Tahir (7) for the final wicket before Dipendra Singh Airee broke the partnership. Safyaan Sharif and Mark Watt also assisted 16 and 17 runs respectively.
Sompal Kami (10-0-40-3) and Aadil Aalam (10-1-33-3) grabbed three wickets each for Nepal. Sompal Kami and Karan Kc also pocketed a couple and one wicket respectively.
