Kathmandu – The Netherlands Cricket team thrashed Nepal in the second twenty20 international match by 103 runs to lead the series 2-0, played at VRA Ground, Amstelveen on Wednesday.
Nepal team were bundled out for a mere 69 runs in 17.4 overs, their lowest in Twenty20 International cricket and sixth lowest total overall in T20I history. Opener Gyanendra Malla quick fire 12 runs (3 fours) in the first over only lasted 6 balls. Binod Bhandari (2) soon followed him in 1.5 overs. Skipper Paras Khadka was also dismissed for a personal score of 2 runs (6 balls). Three main batsmen were already in the pavilion in the third over during the chase.
Lowest Team totals in T20I
| Score | Overs | Opposition | Match Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Netherlands | 39 | 10.3 | Sri Lanka | 24 Mar 2014 |
| Kenya | 56 | 18.4 | Afghanistan | 30 Sep 2013 |
| New Zealand | 60 | 15.3 | Sri Lanka | 31 Mar 2014 |
| Kenya | 67 | 17.2 | Ireland | 4 Aug 2008 |
| Ireland | 68 | 16.4 | West Indies | 30 Apr 2010 |
| Nepal | 69 | 17.4 | Netherlands | 1 Jul 2015 |
| Hong Kong | 69 | 17.0 | Nepal | 16 Mar 2014 |
Opener Subash Khakurel didn’t last long either although he played 12 balls for his 6 runs, he was totally out of the form in the series. The scoreline was 29/4 in 6.2 overs. After that, all the fans out here in the home witness a dramatic collapse of their team. Rajesh Pulami (0), Basant Regmi(2), Pradeep Airee(0) were dismissed within same scoreline. Nepal had to wait 15 balls to score a single. Sompal Kami and Sharad Vesawkar took the initiative to save the pride and added 20 runs for seventh wicket. Kami was dismissed for 14 runs in 11.6 overs when the score reached 49/8 surpassing 39 runs made by Netherlands against Sri Lanka. Once he was removed, it was a matter of time for the dutch bowlers. Sharad Vesawkar was the last man to be out as Nepal collapsed for just 69 runs in 17.4 overs.
Nepal’s lowest in T20I
| Score | Overs | Opposition | Match Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 69 | 17.4 | Netherlands | 1 July 2015 |
| 72 | 20.0 | Hong Kong | Colombo (PSS) |
Michael Rippon was the pick of the bowler for Netherlands as he grabbed three wickets (4-1-11-3). PA van Meekeren, MB van Schelven took two wickets each while Mudassar Bukhari, Ahsan Malik and MP O’Dowd shared wicket a piece.
Earlier, Nepal won the toss and invited Netherlands to bat first. Opener Michael Swart was the star with the bat as he remained unbeaten and scored 76 off 59 balls. He smashed 8 boundaries and a six. Swart and Ben Cooper (66) shared 131 runs partnership for the second wicket to take the score to 157 in 18.4 overs. Cooper scored 66 runs from 46 balls (4×4, 2×6). Wessley Berresi enjoyed his three ball inning that included two sixes helped Netherlands to post 172 in the allocated 20 overs losing 4 wickets.
Sompal Kami (4-0-24-2) was pick of the bowler taking two wickets. Karan KC and Avinash Karn took one wicket each.
This was the biggest ever victory for Netherlands in T20Is. They led the 4-match series 2-0 and the next match will be played in Hazelaarweg, Rotterdam on Thursday July 2, 2015.
