KATHMANDU, NOVEMBER 17
Nepal national women's cricket team defeated Qatar by 61 runs in the second Twenty20 International match to claim the maiden bilateral series at the West End Park International Cricket Stadium in Doha today.
Batting first, Nepal posted 129-6 in 20 overs, riding on half century from skipper Rubina Chhetry, before packing the home side to 68 runs in 19.3 overs. Nepal had defeated Qatar by 119 runs in the first of the three-match series. The third and final match is slated for Thursday. The win sealed maiden series for the Nepali women's cricket team as they took an unassailable 2-0 lead.
Skipper Chhetry became the second Nepali batter to score a half century in T20Is. She struck four boundaries and a six in her 48-ball 50. Indu Barma had created history in the first match of the series scoring 47-ball 55 yesterday.
After losing opener Jyoti Pandey and Kajal Shrestha with 20 runs on the board, Kabita Kunwar and Chhetry added 56 runs for the third wicket. Opener Kunwar struck two sixes in her 30-ball 31.
Qatar reduced Nepal to 67-5 in 14.3 overs claiming three wickets in the space of nine runs but Chhetry and Apsari Begam shared a 37-run partnership to help the team post a strong total. Begam remained unbeaten on 23 off just 17 balls with the help of a four. Angeline Mare claimed 2-28 for Qatar, while Aleena Khan, Sabeeja Panayan and Saachi Dhadwal grabbed one wicket each.
In reply, skipper Aysha top scored for the home team with 24 off 32 balls that included two boundaries, while Kerry Pounsett (15) was the another batter to contribute in double figures. None of the Qatari batters was able to score in double digit in the first match.
Saraswati Kumari was the pick of the Nepali bowlers taking 4-8 from four overs, while skipper Chhetry claimed 2-12 from 2.3 overs and she also earned the player-of-thematch award. Sabnam Rai, Sangita Rai and Kabita Joshi also grabbed one wicket each.
Nepal coach Jagat Tamatta handed T20I debuts to Jyoti Pandey and Sabnam Rai.
After the first-ever T20I series in Qatar, the Nepali team will fly for the United Arab Emirates on November 19 to participate in the ICC Twenty20 World Cup Asia Qualifiers slated for November 22-28.
A version of this article appears in the print on November 18, 2021, of The Himalayan Times.
