After Sandeep Lamichhane’s five-wicket haul, Nepal secured a thrilling 5-run victory over Qatar in the Super Six stage of the ICC T20 World Cup Asia and East Asia Pacific Qualifier.
Chasing a target of 148, Qatar were bowled out for 142 in 19.5 overs. Opener Imal Liyanage top-scored with 55 runs off 35 balls, while Zubair Ali added 52. However, the rest of the batting lineup failed to contribute significantly, leading to Qatar’s defeat.
For Nepal, Sandeep Lamichhane starred with the ball, taking 5 wickets. Nandan Yadav picked up 2 wickets, and Dipendra Singh Airee claimed 1.
At one point, Qatar appeared to be cruising toward victory, but Nepal once again made a remarkable comeback. Two crucial run-outs — one by Dipendra Singh Airee and another by Adil Alam — shifted the momentum in Nepal’s favor.
Earlier, after losing the toss and being sent to bat first, Nepal scored 147 runs for the loss of 9 wickets in 20 overs. Rohit Paudel made 58 runs off 41 balls. Dipendra Singh Airee added 26 runs off 21 balls, while Gulshan Jha played a brisk cameo of 16 runs from 8 balls.
For Qatar, captain Mirza Baig took 3 wickets for 29 runs in his 4 overs, while Daniel Archer also claimed 3 wickets, and Muhammad Asim took 1.
Nepal had defeated the UAE earlier on Sunday in the same Super Six stage.