The Nepalese Cricket Team faced a heavy defeat in their opening game of the CWC League 2 Tri-Series in Canada. The host nation, Canada, handed Nepal a crushing 103-run loss at Maple Leaf North-West Ground in King City.
Invited to bat first, Canada went on to post 253/8 in the allotted 50 overs despite a slow start. They were 29/1 in the powerplay, losing Aaron Johnson. The Nepalese bowlers kept things tight as they were 133/5 in the 37th over. Navneet Dhaliwal made a slow 48 runs whilst Harsh Thaker contributed 27 runs.
Captain Nicholas Kirton took charge in the later part of the innings and played a differential knock. Kirton smacked 73 runs from 44 balls with three fours and six biggies as Canada added 104 runs from the last ten overs. Dilon Heyliger and Saad Bin Zafar also added quick 30 and 17 runs respectively.
For Nepal, Sompal Kami and Lalit Rajbanshi picked up two wickets each. Rohit Paudel, Gulshan Jha and Sandeep Lamichhane also pocketed one wicket each.
In reply, Nepal’s batting lineup collapsed, leading to a heavy defeat. They were reduced to 43/3 during the powerplay, with Kushal Bhurtel (1), Asif Sheikh (20), and Rohit Paudel (5) all dismissed early. Bhim Sharki (18) and DS Airee (8) quickly followed, further worsening the situation.
Kushal Malla struggled to score, managing just 12 runs off 41 balls, while Sompal failed to make an impact. The lower order contributed some valuable runs to help Nepal post a more respectable total. Sandeep Lamichhane and Gulshan Jha put together a 40-run partnership for the eighth wicket before Sandeep was dismissed for 22, with Jha adding 15. Karan KC, the top scorer with 27, was the last wicket to fall as Nepal were bowled out for 150 in 40.1 overs. His 24-ball knock included a couple of fours and sixes.
Dilon Heyliger was a pick of a bowler grabbing five wickets. He ended with a sensational figure of 10-0-31-5 and also received a POTM award. Debutants Akhil Kumar and Ansh Patel both picked up two wickets each whilst Saad Bin Zafar grabbed one.
This is Nepal’s fourth defeat in five matches in the new CWC League 2 campaign. Their next fixture is against Oman on September 18.