By a Staff Reporter
Kathmandu – Far West United found their first victory whereas Janakpur Royals recorded a back-to-back victory in an ongoing Nepal T20 League at TU Cricket Ground.
In the first fixture of the day, Far West United fought hard to chase the winning target of 99 runs. Moreover, Janakpur Royals beat Biratnagar Super Kings by 5 wickets in a nail-biting match.
Far West fought hard to earn first win
Invited to bat first, Kathmandu Knights scored 98/9 in the scheduled 20 overs. Kathmandu’s middle order batsman Alex Blake contributed the highest of 45 runs off 37 deliveries with 5 fours and 1 six.
Opener Santosh Karki and Skipper Gyanendra Malla collected 12 and 13 runs respectively. No other batsmen scored in double figures.
Virandeep Singh (4), Ryan Burl (2), Lokesh Bam (6), Azmatullah Omarazai (3), Basir Ahamad (4), and Kamal Singh Airee added 5 runs to the tally. While Anil Kharel left the crease following a duck out, Abinash Bohara remained not out for 0.
Far West’s Umair Ali claimed 3 wickets whereas Bhuvan Karki and Hashmatullah Shahidi took 2 wickets each. Moreover, Sher Malla booked a single wicket in his name.
In return, Far West United chased the winning target of 99 runs scoring 102/6 in 19.1 overs. Dev Khanal and Harishankar Shah, who opened the innings had another day to forget. With Dev scoring 17 runs, Harishankar returned to the pavilion following a duck out.
Skipper Hashmatullah, who stepped in as a third batsman, played a half-century inning, lasting at the crease till the end. The Afghani top-order batsman collected 50 runs off 49 deliveries with 3 fours and 2 sixers.
Bhim Sharki (11), Binod Bhandari (4), Basant Karki (0), and Umair Ali contributed 1 run to the winning side. Karan KC remained unbeaten for 8 runs off 7 deliveries with 1 four.
Lalit and Walton guided Janakpur to victory
Janakpur Royals beat Biratnagar Super Kings by 5 wickets in a nail-biting match. Chadwick Walton helped his side win the second match of the tournament.
Opening with a bat, Biratnagar scored 140 runs before getting all out in 19.5 overs. Sikandar Raza scored the highest of 38 runs off 18 balls for the losing side.
While Gauranshu Sharma, Prithu Baskota, and Nandan Yadav returned to the pavilion following a duck out, Lalit Rajbanshi bowled Biratnagar’s Skipper Andre McCarthy for 1 run.
Arjun Saud (18), Rohit Paudel (32), Hussain Talat (28), Bibek Yadav (10), and Shahab Alam contributed 4 runs to the tally. Rijan Dhakal remained not out for 0.
Janakpur Royal’s Spinner Lalit Rajbanshi picked 5 wicket haul and was named the player of the match. With this, Lalit became the first Nepali player to be named player of the match in the ongoing Nepal T20.
Moreover, Kesrick Williams and Mohammad Aadil Alam claimed 2 wickets each and Sompal Kami took a piece.
In return, Janakpur chased the winning target of 141 runs in the prescribed 20 overs losing 5 wickets. Janakpur Royals needed 16 runs in the last over to win the match. Walton opened the last over with a four, smashed 6 in the third, hit 4 in the second last, and took 2 runs in the last ball to win the match.
Chadwick Walton contributed the highest of 69 runs off 55 deliveries with 5 fours and 4 sixers. Trevon Griffith (23), Sharafuddin Ashraf (23), and Mohammad Aadil Alam* added 10 runs to the total. Moreover, Sagar Pun (5), Sundeep Jora as well as Rajesh Pulami left the crease for a single run.
Biratnagar’s Hussain Talat, Nandan Yadav, and Rijan Dhakal claimed 1 wicket each.
