Nepal Advances to the Final of ACC Men’s U-16 East Zone Cup with a 98-run Victory over Singapore in Malaysia
Nepal will face Malaysia in the final match scheduled for Tuesday. Singapore, on the other hand, will play against Hong Kong in the third-place playoff on the same day.
Chasing the target of 185 runs Singapore could only manage to score 87 runs in 31.3 overs, falling short of their target by 98 runs.
For Singapore, opener Roshan Ravichandran contributed the highest with 24 runs, including three fours and a six. Kabir Berila scored 11 runs in 15 balls, supporting the team’s innings. None of Singapore’s other nine batsmen were able to add significant runs to the scoreboard.
Nepal’s Kritik Kamat took 3 wickets, while Santosh Yadav, Abhishek Tiwari, Naren Bhatt, Pratik Pokharel, and Ashok Dhami all claimed 1 wicket each.
Earlier, Nepal won the toss and elected to bat first, putting up a total of 184 runs in the allotted 35 overs, losing 9 wickets in the process.
Opener Suryanshu Koirala top-scored for Nepal, contributing 43 runs off 49 balls, including six boundaries. Nepal had a good start with the opening partnership of Koiralal and Niraj Yadav, who shared a 63-run stand in 70 balls.
Suryansh fell victim to Riaan Naik’s catch, while Niraj Yadav added 42 runs in 49 balls with three fours & a six to his name.
After losing the first wicket, none of the other batsmen were able to form substantial partnerships. Wicketkeeper Aashish Luhar was dismissed for 6 runs. Naren Bhatt was caught and bowled by Hariharan for 3 runs, and captain Abhishek Tiwari was out for 25 runs, including one four and one six. Middle-order batsmen Santosh Yadav scored 18 runs in 24 balls, and Pratik Bhattarai was dismissed for 12 runs. Dipu Kumar and Kritik Kamat were also dismissed for 12 and 10 runs, respectively.
Singapore’s Hariharan took 3 wickets, while Harsh Venkatram and Kabir Berila claimed 2 wickets each.
With this victory, Nepal has secured a spot in the final, showcasing their dominance in the tournament. The team will aim to clinch the championship title in the highly anticipated final match against Malaysia.
