Nepal bags up an 8-wicket win against their rivals in the deciding match between Nepal and UAE held at Mulpani Stadium on Friday, 3rd of November. With this, Nepal qualifies for the T20 World Cup 2024, which is set to take place in the USA and West Indies.
UAE, choosing to bat first after winning the toss, was able to get 134 runs on the scoreboard. Despite a brilliant start by captain Muhammad Wassem, the UAE was put on the back foot by two quick wickets.
On a slowish pitch where spinners dominated the UAE hitters, wickets kept falling despite Vriitya Aravind’s excellent showing at one end.
Nepali bowlers played their part in restricting the UAE players from achieving a substantial total. Kushal Malla picked up three wickets, conceding 11 runs in 3 overs. It was then Sandeep Lamichhane who bagged two wickets, along with Rohit Paudel and Sompal Kami claiming one wicket each.
Despite losing the early wicket of opener Kushal Bhurtel, Nepal managed to achieve the target of 135 runs with the help of the crucial partnership of Aasif Sheikh and Gulshan Jha. Aasif Sheikh played an important innings, contributing 63 runs, while Gulshan Jha made a notable 22 runs. It was then Rohit Paudel who finished the match with 35 runs from 21 balls.
Not to forget, it was a do-or-die match for both of the teams as the winner of the semifinals would only qualify for the T20 World Cup happening next year.
With this victory, Nepal qualifies for the T20 World Cup and is all set to play the T20 World Cup next year in the USA and West Indies, along with 20 other nations.
The Journey to World Cup after 10 Years
The win against the UAE confirmed Nepal’s return to the World Cup after a decade. Nepal made their first ever World Cup appearance in 2014, held in Bangladesh.
The 2014 World Cup edition in Bangladesh featured iconic and legendary players, including Captain Paras Khadka along with Shakti Gauchan, Gyanendra Malla, and others.
The Nepali team performed well in the tournament by beating Afghanistan and Hong Kong during their group games but lost against the hosts Bangladesh to exit the tournament.
Nepal will now participate in the World Cup for a second time in June 2024, ten years after making its debut in the competition in 2014.
It’s now time to look forward to how the young Nepali team will be performing in the World Cup in 2024.
As the Nepali team has been performing up to the expectations of their fans in recent tournaments, Nepali fans are hopeful about the team’s performance in the World Cup.
With this, it will be a pleasure to watch Nepal play in the World Cup with tons of love and support from enthusiastic Nepali fans.
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