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By a Staff Reporter
Province 1 and Sudurpaschim Province registered victories as they marched to the semi-finals of the National Women’s Cricket Tournament remaining undefeated.
Karnali suffers hefty defeat
Province 1 won the first match of the day over Karnali Province by 10 wickets with 37 balls in spare. The match began late than the scheduled time due to heavy fog at Janata Cricket Park in Ithari. Beginning with the bat, Karnali scored 39/5 in the allocated 11-over.
Karnali’s Rama Budhathoki (18) alone scored in double numbers. She stroked 1 four off 29 deliveries to collect the total. With openers, Kiran Kunwar and Yamuna Tharu departing for 1 and 4 runs respectively, Trishna Biswakarma 6, and Anju Gurung added 2 runs to the tally. Moreover, Dikshya Puri 5 and Nitu Sunar 0 remained not out.
Jyoti Danwar, Rubina Chhetry, Sangita Rai, and Kajol Rajbanshi of Province 1 claimed one wicket each.
Later, Province 1 chased the winning target of 40 runs in 4.5 overs. Kajal Shrestha and Skipper Rubina Chhetry, who opened the innings sealed the match remaining undefeated.
While Rubina scored 22 runs off 14 deliveries with 3 fours and 1 six, Kajal contributed 13 runs off 15 deliveries with 2 fours.
Title favorites APF stunned
In the day’s second match, Sudurpaschim defeated title favorites Nepal APF Club by 4 wickets with 4 balls remaining to qualify for the semifinal as group winners.
APF, who elected to bat first after winning the toss pitched 91 runs with 1 wicket in hand in the prescribed 20 overs.
APF’s middle-order batter Mamta Chaudhary top-scored 26 runs off 26 deliveries with 2 fours remaining not out. While opener Jyoti Pandey left the crease for 14 runs, Skipper Sita Rana Magar departed for a tiny four runs.
With Indu Barma and Roma Thapa returning to the dugout for 11 and 15, Sarita Magar and Sushma Shrestha got duck out. Nary Thapa 7, Manju Bokati 1, and Rekha Rawal added 6 runs further. Suman Bist remained unbeaten for 2.
Player of the match Kabita Joshi was the pick of Sudurpaschim bowlers picking 3-15 from 4 overs. Further, with Ritu Kanoujiya claiming 2 wickets, Kabita Kunwar and Manisha Chaudhary booked one apiece.
In reply, Sudurpaschim chased the winning target of 92 runs in 19.2 overs losing 6 wickets. Smashing 4 fours and a sixer off 38 balls, Dolly Bhatta top-scored for the winning side. With Ritu Kanoujiya (10) contributing double figures, the rest departed with single figures. While Kabita Kunwar and Samjhana Khadka added 2 runs each, Skipper Bindu Rawal and Rubi Poddar contributed half a dozen runs each. Moreover, Kabita Joshi and Rwwati Dhami remained unbeaten for 7 and 8 runs.
With APF’s Nary Thapa taking 3-10 from 4 overs with 1 maiden, Suman Bist, Indu Barma, and Sita Rana Magar claimed 1 each.
Semi-finals
The victories mean Province 1, and Sudurpaschim province have confirmed their spot in the semifinals remaining group toppers. Even with the defeat, APF has qualified for the semifinal as Group ‘A’ runners-up.
The Group ‘A’ winners will face Group ‘B’ runners-up in the first semi-final whereas the Group ‘B’ winners will take on Group ‘A’ runners-up in the second semi-final. The semifinals will be held on January 20.
