KATHMANDU, SEPTEMBER 4

Nepal put up a spirited show against mighty India in their second match of the Asia Cup at the Pallekele International Stadium in Kandy, Sri Lanka. today.

Sent in to bat first, Nepal were bowled out for 230 runs in 48.2 overs riding on impressive knocks from Kushal Bhurtel, Aasif Sheikh and Sompal Kami.

In reply, India - who received a revised target of 145 from 23 overs after a rain delay in the second innings - raced to 147 without loss with 17 balls to spare, recording a 10-wicket victory under the DLS method.

Nepali batsmen made a positive approach after India skipper Rohit Sharma won the toss and decided to bowl first.

Playing for the first time against India, Nepali openers Bhurtel and Sheikh made a flying start scoring 65 runs in 10 overs. Although the Indian fielders dropped as many as three catches in the early stage of the match, Bhurtel and Sheikh built the innings with confidence, hitting shots all over the park, against star-studded attack including Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Hardik Pandya and Shardul Thakur.

Thakur made the breakthrough in the fifth ball of the 10th over when Bhurtel had a nick and Ishan Kishan collected a catch behind the stumps.

Bhurtel - who was dropped one three and seven runs and also had the umpire's decision overturned through review - scored a quick fire 38 off 25 balls that included three foursand two sixes.

India hit back with quick wickets after Ravindra Jadeja came into attack and Nepal were reduced to 101-4. While Sheikh stayed firm at one end, he saw the fall of Bhim Sharki (seven), skipper Rohit Paudel (five) and Kushal Malla (two) in the space of 24 runs. Sheikh combined with Gulsan Jha to revive the innings and they added 31 runs for the fifth wicket. In between, Sheikh brought up his 10th half century in ODIs with a single off Siraj in the 28th over.

At a time when Sheikh was looking set for a big score, Siraj forced him to play to the leg side and ended up with a leading edge to short cover where Virat Kohli took a simple catch to amend his previous mistake.

Kohli had dropped Sheikh when the batsman was on one run in the first ball of the second over. Sheikh departed after scoring 58 off 97 balls with the help of eight boundaries. Jha was dismissed 12 runs later, caught behind by Kishan off Siraj, for 23 off 35 balls that included three fours.

Dipendra Singh Airee and Sompal Kami then added 50 runs for the sixth wicket to take the score close to the 200- run mark. After the fall of Airee, who struck three fours in his 25-ball 29, Kami and Sandeep Lamichhane (nine) shared a 34-run partnership for the seventh wicket. Nepal lost the last three wickets in the space of two runs to be bowled out with six balls remaining.

Like Sheikh, lower-order batsman Kami also played a brilliant knock scoring 48 off 56 balls with the help of a boundary and two sixes.

Siraj (3-61) and Jadeja (3-40) shared six wickets between them, while Shami, Pandya and Thakur grabbed one each.

'I got the start in the early overs and was looking to maximise it. I was looking to bat till the 40th over but unfortunately that didn't happen,' said Sheikh. 'It's the biggest stage for us and we're showing ourselves in a good manner. Nepali fans are all over this ground, and we're thankful to them. Everywhere we go, we get good support.'

Nepal troubled India skipper Rohit Sharma in the first over with Karan KC coming close on two occasions. Nepal also reviewed the umpire's decision in the third ball of the innings but Sharma survived the scare as replays showed the ball agonisingly missing the edge of the bat. After KC conceded a single run in the first over, Shubman Gill hit Sompal Kami for three fours in the second over and Sharma scored a boundary off KC's in the first ball of the next over before rain halted play with India 17-0 in 2.1 overs.

When play resumed, India received a revised target. While Nepal made their statement with the bat, the bowlers could not live up to expectations as India openers Sharma and Gill took the team home scoring half centuries each. Skipper Sharma remained unbeaten on 74 off 59 balls hitting six boundaries and five sixes, while Gill scored 62-ball 69 not out with eight fours and a six.

Nepal, who had faced a massive 238-run defeat against Pakistan in the opening match on August 30 in Multan, crashed out of the tournament with two straight losses in their first-ever Asia Cup appearance, while India joined Pakistan in the Super Four.

A version of this article appears in the print on September 05, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.