KATHMANDU: Nepal defeated Eastbourne Cricket Club of Englang in their fourth and final practice match during their preparation tour by a massive 181 runs at the Saffrons in Britain on Sunday.

Nepal started the match without skipper Paras  Khadka, vice-captain Gyanendra Malla, Karan Kc and youngster Sandeep Lamichhane as they were all given a rest for the match against the Marleybone Cricket Club scheduled for Tuesday.

Shakti Gauchan was the stand-in captain for the match.

Nepal elected to bat after winning the toss. Subash Khakurel, replacing Gyanendra Malla, was dismissed early for six runs meaning an early blow for Nepal.

Anil Mandal then set the tone for Nepal with a splendid 73 off 110 balls. Mandal rotated the strike well and Sharad Vesawkar cashed in on the freedom and led the charge against the Eastbourne bowlers. Vesawkar hit the ball to all corners of the ground and made a quickfire 60, putting up a three figure stand with Mandal for the second wicket.

Raju Rijal joined in after Vesawkar was dismissed and played a crucial knock to help Nepal steer past the 300 run mark. Binod Bhandari, who was often under the radar for underperforming, showcased his talent with a destructive 77 runs knock off just 53 deliveries. Nepal scored 300 runs at the loss of three wickets after the accumulated 50 overs.

This was Nepal’s best performance with the bat so far in their tour of England.

Chasing 301 runs to win, Eastbourne had hoped for a positive start; but to the their dismay, Nepali bowlers did not give them any chances whatsoever to settle down by picking wickets at regular intervals.

Bikram Sob and Sompal Kami destroyed Eastbourne's top order with their immaculate bowling display within the first 10 overs. Basant Regmi and Sagar Pun shared two wickets each to their name while Shakti Gauchan and Bikram Sob picked up a wicket each.

Kami was the pick of the bowlers as he sent three Eastbourne batsmen packing, giving away 15 runs in his six over spell.

With this comprehensive victory, Nepal remain unblemished in their tour of England so far. They won all of their practice matches ahead of their game against the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) at the Lord's on July 19.

Earlier, Nepal had defeated the Free Foresters, the Indian Gymkhana, Club Cricket Conference in their previous practice matches.

Nepal's performance in their practice matches so far gives them a good momentum prior to their World Cricket League Championship matches against the Netherlands scheduled for August.