Kathmandu, January 2
Pokhara Avengers continued their winning streak, while Janakpur Royals recorded their fifth victory in the NepalT20 Cricket League here at the TU Stadium today.
After losing their first five matches, the Avengers defeated Kathmandu Knights by five wickets to register their third straight victory. Both teams are tied in six points and the Knights are ahead at third place on better net run rate.
Batting first, the Knights posted 164-4 in their allotted 20 overs before the Avengers reached 168-5 with two balls remaining. Opener Sumit Maharjan and skipper Upul Tharanga scored half centuries and added 112 runs for the third wicket to guide the Avengers to victory. The Avengers lost Aasif Sheikh (seven) and Aarif Sheikh (naught) in the space of two balls to be 16-2, thanks to Kamal Airee, who struck twice in the second over.
Maharjan and Tharanga then took the match away from the Knights. Player-ofthe-match Maharjan top scored with a quick fire 76 off 52 balls that included seven boundaries and three sixes, while Tharanga struck five fours and a six in his 49- ball 58. Kushal Malla struck a six in his unbeaten 14 off eight balls. Airee was the pick of the Knights bowlers taking 3-26 from 3.4 overs, while Anil Kharel and Abinash Bohara grabbed one wicket each.
Earlier, Alex Blake scored a quick fire 64 off 28 balls hitting three fours and seven sixes and Sunam Gautam struck five fours in his 42- ball 45 to help the Knights post a fighting total. Opener Virandeep Singh contributed 32 off 38 balls with the help of two fours and a six.
Tul Thapa took 2-17 for the Avengers, while Pratis GC and Kushal Malla bagged one wicket each.
In another match, the Royals hammered Far West United by 82 runs. The Royals posted 161-7 in their allotted 20 overs, while the United faltered to 79 all out with 35 balls to spare. Playerof-the-match Sundeep Jora top scored for the Royals with 55 off just 32 balls that included a four and five sixes, while opener Trevon Griffith struck two each fours and sixes in his 22-ball 32.
Chadwick Walton (24), Sharafuddin Ashraf (20) and Rajesh Pulami (16) also chipped in valuable runs for the Royals. Prakash Jaishi was the pick of the United bowlers taking 3-25, while Bhuvan Karki grabbed 2-7 and Noor Ahmad bagged one wicket.
In reply, the United were never in contention with only three batters scoring in double figures. Skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi was the top scorer with run-aball 32 that included two fours and a six, while Rashid Khan remained unbeaten on 17 and Bhim Sharki contributed 16. Samiullah Shinwari was the pick of the Royals bowlers taking 3-16 from three overs, while Sompal Kami (2-18) and Pawan Sarraf (2-15) share four wickets between them. Sharafuddin Ashraf, Jitendra Mukhiya and Lalit Rajbanshi grabbed one wicket each.
A version of this article appears in the print on January 3, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.
