Kathmandu, April 30

Santwana College and Himalayan White House College began the Expert College Premier League Cricket Tournament with victories here at the TU Stadium today.

Santwana thrashed St Xavier’s College by 111 runs, while White House registered a seven-run victory over Nepal Tourism and Hotel Management College (NTHMC) of Pokhara in the inaugural day matches of the tournament organised by Kanchanjunga International Pvt Ltd.

Batting first, Santwana scored a mammoth 214-4 in 20 overs and restricted St Xavier's to 106-7. Man-of-the-match Rajesh Pulami top scored for Santwana with 58 off 31 balls that included four boundaries and four sixes, while Hasim Ansari struck seven fours and a six in his 33-ball 55. Prakash Bista scored 35 off 28 balls hitting three fours and a six. Anup Neupane, Rabin Baral and Sandip Nepal claimed a wicket apiece for St Xavier’s.

In reply, St Xavier's were never in the chase as they lost wickets at regular intervals. Anup Neupane top scored for St Xavier's with 29 off 22 balls with five fours, while Bibhatsu Thapa scored 21 off 40 balls. Three batsmen failed to open their accounts, while others failed to reach double digit mark. Avinash Karn and Rajesh Pulami claimed two wickets each, while Abinash Bohara and Sushan Bhari claimed a wicket apiece for Santwana.

In another match, White House scored 153-8 in 20 overs after they elected to bat first and restricted NTHMC to 146-7. Man-of-the-match Sameer Nepal top scored for White House with 42 off 24 balls that included three fours and three sixes, while Rit Gautam made 23 off 29 balls with three fours. Pawan Sharaf scored 20 off 13 balls. Amrit Gurung, Rijan Prajoo and Raju Gurung claimed two wickets each for NTHMC, while Bipin Khatri and Anil Gurung took a wicket each.

In reply, Rijan Prajoo top scored for NTHMC with 42 off 30 balls that included four fours and a six, while Anupam Singh made 39 off 38 balls hitting four fours and a six. Ram Naresh Giri claimed three wickets for White House, while Dipesh Shrestha, Sameer Nepal and Pawan Sharaf grabbed a wicket each.