KATHMANDU, AUGUST 28
Nepal sealed a record four-wicket victory over Kenya in the third Twenty20 International match at the Nairobi Gymkhana grounds in Nairobi today.
Batting first, Kenya scored 156-2 in their allotted 20 overs before Nepal overcame the target for the loss of six wickets with three balls to spare. The chase is Nepal's highest in the successful chase in the shortest form of the game.
Nepal had earlier successfully chased 152-run target against Singapore in the tri-series tournament in 2019 in Singapore, riding on skipper Paras Khadka's century.
Khadka had become the first skipper in the world to score a ton while successfully chasing the target.
Chasing a reachable but tricky target, former skipper Gyanendra Malla shared two key partnerships to lead Nepal to victory. After Pawan Sarraf was dismissed for 20 with 35 runs on the board, Malla and debutant Arjun Saud added 42 runs for the second wicket.
Saud struck two fours and three sixes in his 31-ball 35 in his first match for the national team. After the fall of Saud, former captain Malla and vice-captain shared a 54-run partnership for the fifth wicket.
Malla too scored foe the team with 41-ball 46 with the help of four boundaries and a six, while Poudel scored a quickfire 29 off 18 balls that included three fours and a six. Aadil Ansari contributed 16 runs.
Earlier, Irfan Karim and Rakeo Patel shared an unbeaten 127-run partnership for the third wicket to help the hosts post a challenging total. Kenya were reduced to 29-2 before the duo anchored the innings.
Patel top scored with 73 not out and he struck five boundaries and four sixes, while Karim struck four fours and two sixes in his unbeaten 55 off 47 balls.
Sompal Kami and Aadil Ansari took one wicket each for Nepal. Malla was named the player of the match for the first time in his comeback tour. With the win, Nepal took a 2-1 lead in the five-match series. The fourth game is scheduled for Monday.
A version of this article appears in the print on August 29, 2022 of The Himalayan Times.
