Kathmandu, February 5

Nepal were knocked out of the second Twenty20 World Cup for Blind following their 131-run defeat against Sri Lanka at the Pune PYC Ground in India today.

Opting to bat first, Sri Lanka scored a mammoth 274-2 before restricting Nepal to 143-5. In six matches, Nepal registered one victory losing five games and are now out of the competition which is being played under round robin league among 10 nations. Nepal’s lone victory came against South Africa, a six-wicket win in third match.

Currently, India are at the top of the table with 18 points, followed by Pakistan (15) and Bangladesh (15). Sri Lanka and Australia have 12 points each, while England are next with nine. Nepal and the West Indies have three apiece, while South Africa and New Zealand are yet to open their accounts. Nepal will next play against England, India and New Zealand.

On Sunday, Sri Lanka posted a huge total riding on Suranga Sampatha’s century. Sampatha cracked 19 fours and a six in his 48-ball 111 before being retired hurt, while Ruwan Wasantha hit a 41-ball 76 with the help of eight fours. Ruwan Karunathitaka smashed five boundaries in his 18-ball 33, while Kavidu Sahan Kumara remained unbeaten on 12-ball 32.

In reply, Nepal had a disastrous run chase as they lost first two wickets with just 15 runs on the board inside 3.3 overs. Opener Sunil Thapa Magar, who top scored with 38 off 30 balls, added 60 runs for the third wicket with skipper Kritan Shrestha Duwal (37 not out) but that was not enough for them to avert the defeat. Thapa hit four boundaries and Duwal’s innings included two fours. Padam Bahadur Badaila remained unbeaten on 23 off 18 balls that included three boundaries.