Nepal suffers bitter loss to Canada as batting collapses

KATHMANDU, Sept 17: Nepal suffered a bitter 103-run loss to Canada in their first match of the second edition of the ICC World Cup Cricket League-2 as their batting collapsed.

In the game held on Monday at King City's Ontario Stadium, Nepal won the toss and opted to field first.

Chasing a target of 254 runs set by Canada, Nepal were all out for 150 in 40.1 overs. Karan KC was the top scorer for Nepal, managing 27 runs, hitting two fours and two sixes. Sandeep Lamichhane added 22 runs, while Gulshan Jha contributed 15.

Opener Kushal Bhurtel was dismissed after making just 1 run, facing 10 balls. Other batsmen also struggled, with Asif Sheikh dismissed after making 20 runs, Bhim Sharki 18, captain Rohit Paudel 5, Kushal Malla 12, Dipendra Singh Airee 8, and Sompal Kami 6.

Nepal's bowlers managed some breakthroughs, with Sompal Kami and Lalit Rajbanshi taking 2 wickets each, while Sandeep Lamichhane, Gulshan Jha, and Rohit Paudel claimed 1 wicket each.

This is the first time that Nepal has lost to Canada in an ODI, having won the previous three encounters.

Nepal has now played five games in League-2 but has only secured one win, leaving the team second to last on the points table. Nepal’s next game is against Oman on Wednesday night.

This is Nepal’s second League-2 series in Canada. Previously, Nepal played the first series on home ground, where they managed to win only one out of the four matches against the Netherlands and Namibia.