By a Staff Reporter
Kathmandu – Wicketkeeper Arjun Saud’s half century went in vain as Nepal were defeated by Sri Lanka in their ACC U-19 Asia Cup match in the UAE on Sunday.
Nepal’s hopes of making it to the semifinal have come to an abrupt end after losing the group-stage match against Sri Lanka by 60 runs.
Nepal, who were chasing a mammoth target of 323 runs, were all out in 47.5 overs with 262 runs on board. It was one of the best performances of Nepal against a Test-playing nation.
Arjun Saud had scored 64 runs off 80 balls that included three boundaries and two sixes. Bivek Yadav played an offensive batting scoring 46 runs off 29 balls that included 3 boundaries and 3 sixes before he was sent packing. Arjun Saud became the first Nepali player to score a half century in the ongoing tournament. He had reached the half-century mark from 73 balls.
Earlier, Sri Lanka who opted to bat first after winning the toss, posted a total of 322 runs in 50 overs losing 4 wickets. Sadisha Rajpakshe top scored for Sri Lanka with 131 runs off 119 balls.
Nepal had lost their first match against Bangladesh by 154 runs. The U-19 team of Nepal will play their last group-stage match against Kuwait on Tuesday.
Pakistan top Group A with four points from two matches followed by India with 1 win and a defeat. Afghanistan are third with 1 win and a defeat. Likewise, the UAE are on bottom without any points.
In Group B, Sri Lanka top the standings with four points from two matches. Bangladesh are second with equal four points but are behind due to net run rate. Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have already qualified for the final. Both Nepal and Kuwait are on the bottom half without aby point from two matches.
