In an inconsequential Group C match in Mumbai on Tuesday, Nepal ended their 12-year winless streak in the T20 World Cup with a seven-wicket victory over Scotland, with to early fireworks from Kushal Bhurtel and an undefeated fifty from Dipendra Singh Airee.
The Rhinos concluded this edition with a thrilling victory in front of almost 19,000 spectators at the Wankhede Stadium, ending Nepal’s losing streak since 2014, when they defeated Afghanistan and the Netherlands in their T20 World Cup debut.
Airee’s explosive 50 not out off 23 balls, which included three sixes and four fours, and Bhurtel’s (43), inspirational start were the highlights of Nepal’s spirited chase, which saw them reach 171/3 in 19.2 overs after trailing 171. At a pivotal moment, Gulsan Jha (24 not out) added two soaring sixes to his undefeated 73-run partnership for the fourth wicket.
Bhurtel enjoyed an early reprieve when Brad Currie failed to hold on to a return catch, and the Nepal opener made Scotland pay immediately, launching a towering six over long-on in the same over. Under early pressure, Nepal’s batters began cautiously, but once they settled in and found their rhythm, they shifted gears and seized control of the innings.
Bhurtel hit two sixes and a four off Mark Watt in the following over after Aasif Sheikh (33) started with a six over fine leg in the fourth over. Watt gave up as much as 23 runs before Aasif completed with yet another strong hit over square leg. Nepal was unable to maintain the pace of scoring large runs, though, as pressure mounted on the batters in subsequent overs from Scottish spinners, leading to a few wickets.
Bhurtel was caught at midwicket for a brilliant 43 off 35 balls, which included four sixes and a four, after mishitting a sweep off Michael Leask (3/30). Brad Wheal collected a heavy edge off Aasif’s bat at short third off Leask shortly after, sending him back into the hut. In the 14th over, Leask had their captain, Rohit Paudel (16), caught by backward square leg. To get 20 runs off the 16th, however, Airee hit two on-side sixes and a four in his last over.
Nepal triumphed with four balls remaining when Jha finished the formalities with a four off the 20th over.
Earlier, Scotland reached a competitive 170/7 with Michael Jones scoring a quick 71. With England and the West Indies moving on to the next round from the group, both teams were eliminated from consideration for the Super Eights.
Despite failing to convert their starts, Scottish batsmen managed to finish at a competitive total on the flat deck, with the exception of Jones, who hit eight fours and three sixes in his 45-ball innings. Jones put in the most effort during his 80-run partnership with George Munsey for the first wicket. Munsey remained in the middle until the midway point of Scotland’s innings, but he was unable to generate any momentum.
Munsey could only play a supporting role, scoring 27 runs off 29 balls with four boundaries, while Jones, who is right-handed, easily penetrated gaps and met the ball with the sweet portion of his bat to get boundaries at regular intervals.
On the last ball of the tenth over, Munsey fell and connected with an innocent full toss from Paudel with the toe end of the bat, displaying his irritation at not being able to achieve a move-on. When Sundeep Jora made a beautiful diving grab in front of him at long-on, the Scottish opener whacked his bat in disgust.
However, when McMullen struck one off Nandan Yadav on the opening ball of the 14th over, Jora and Nepal seemed to have claimed a victory. Jora, who was positioned at mid-on, only needed to take five steps, but he deserves praise for maintaining his focus on the ball. When the ball finally returned to him, Jora was unaware that it had passed through his hands and struck the turf, causing him to fall to the ground.
Jones kept on delivering his powerful blows, slamming a 94-meter strike directly into his dressing room balcony as the ball fell into his partner Tom Bruce’s hands. Sompal Kami (3/25), who came around the wicket in the 16th over, cleaned up the Scotland opener and made a spectacular one-handed grab to take a return catch off McMullen, ending Jones’ innings shortly after.
