KATHMANDU, JUNE 17
In a dramatic encounter, Nepal and the Netherlands battled through three super overs before the Dutch finally emerged victorious.
Chasing 153 for victory, Nepal looked in control until Rohit Paudel's dismissal in the penultimate over tilted the equation in favor of the Dutch. However, Nandan Yadav rescued Nepal with a crucial 12-run cameo, including a powerful last-ball cover drive to long-on, which leveled the score and pushed the match into a thrilling series of super overs.
In the first super over, Nepal posted 19 runs off Doram's bowling, thanks to Kushal Bhurtel's explosive hitting-two sixes and a four. The Netherlands responded in kind, with Levitt launching Karan KC for a six off the first ball, and Max O'Dowd leveling the score with a boundary.
In the second super over, Netherlands captain Scott Edwards struck a six off Lalit Rajbanshi and helped his side reach 17 runs, losing his wicket on the final delivery.
In response, Nepal's skipper Rohit Paudel hit Klein for a six, with Dipendra Singh Airee at the non-striker's end. Airee followed up with a four, leaving Nepal needing 7 runs from 3 balls. However, he missed the next two deliveries before dispatching the final ball for a six-tying the score once again.
In the third and decisive super over, Paudel was dismissed on the very first ball, caught at long-on off Zach Lion-Cachet. Rupesh Singh struggled to connect cleanly with the next two balls and was caught behind on the third, leaving Nepal scoreless.
In reply, Levitt smashed the first delivery from Sandeep Lamichhane-wearing his signature headband-over the boundary for a six, sealing a memorable win for the Netherlands.
Rohit Paudel top-scored with 48 off 35 balls, striking three boundaries and two sixes, while Kushal Bhurtel gave Nepal a solid start with 34 off 23 deliveries, including five boundaries. Daniel Doram was the pick of the bowlers, returning impressive figures of 4-0-14-3.
Earlier, the Netherlands posted a competitive total of 152/7 in their allotted 20 overs. Teja Nidamanuru top-scored with 35 runs, while Vikramjit Singh, Max O'Dowd, and Michael Levitt contributed 30, 19, and 20 runs, respectively.
For Nepal, Sandeep Lamichhane claimed three wickets, Nandan Yadav took two, while Lalit Rajbanshi and Kushal Bhurtel chipped in with one apiece.
With this result, the Dutch opened their account in the tournament after an earlier loss to hosts Scotland. Nepal is set to face Scotland in their next fixture tomorrow.
In the post-match presentation, Zach Lion-Cachet, who delivered the decisive over, said: "Disbelief, to be honest. I backed myself to deliver in the third super over. The pitch was holding a bit, so I adjusted accordingly. It was tough to separate the two teams today, but I'm just happy we came out on top."
Losing captain Rohit Paudel reflected on the game, stating: "What a great game of cricket-it's not every day you play two super overs. Disappointed to be on the losing side. We couldn't finish it off as they bowled well, both early and in the middle overs. Hopefully, we'll bounce back stronger in the next match."
Winning captain Scott Edwards added, "Pretty incredible game of cricket-there's a lot to talk about. Nepal are an exciting team. They did the basics well and are one of the better fielding sides. We're happy to get the win today."
