On rain affected match, Nepal pulled a 25 runs victory over Denmark under D/L methods. Nepal put up 240 runs losing all the wickets by the end of 50 overs thanks to Mandal´s 113 runs. In Denmark´s reply, rain interrupted the play on 77/3 in 25 overs. Denmark received a revised target of 156 runs as the innings was cut to 31 overs but the European team managed only 130/9.
At Kinrara Academy, Nepal elected to bat first but lost Subash Khakurel, who had scored a century two days ago against the USA, in the second ball.
Gyanendra Malla played freely before running himself out on 26 (35 balls, 4 fours) and captain Paras Khadka departed after adding just 3 runs and Nepal was down at 50 for 3.
Mandal and Sharad Vesawkar played patiently - batting slowly to repair the damage. They built their partnership on singles adding 89 runs in 22.2 overs. When Vesawkar was out in 36th over, he had scored 27 off 66 balls without boundaries.
Before Vesawkar was out, Mandal completed his half-century, in 90 balls, and launched into an attack belting three boundaries and two sixes to quickly reach 79 not out. With lower order, he reached his maiden century, only the fifth for Nepali batsmen, completing his second 50 runs in 27 balls. He was eventually out for 113 off 134 balls with eight boundaries and four sixes.
Basanta Regmi (21 runs off 27 balls), Binod Das (15 runs off 7 balls including 2 sixes) and Pradeep Airee (11 runs) chipped in with useful runs as Nepal ended its innings at 240 all out in 50 overs with Sanjam Regmi getting out in the last ball for ´obstructing the field´.
Denmark too began badly losing their best batsman, Carsten Pedersen in second over, but Andreas Lambert anchored one end while watching his friends coming in, scoring a few runs and departing. At the conclusion of 25 overs, they were 77/3 with Lambert on 47 runs when rain stopped the play.
However, he departed on the first ball on resumption with off-spinner Sanjam Regmi getting his second wicket.
The runs and wickets flowed in but it was Nepal who prevailed as Denmark surrendered to the uphill task. They hit Binod Das for 12 runs in an over and Paras Khadka for 18 runs. However, Khadka returned to bowl the last over when they needed 29 for victory and took 3 wickets to end the match.
Khadka was the top of the Nepali bowlers claiming 4 for 34 while Sanjam Regmi and Basant Regmi both claimed a couple of wickets each. Basant Regmi is the highest wicket-taker of the tournament so far as he has claimed 16 wickets in the five matches. Shakti Gauchan took a wicket as well.
UML General Secy Pokhrel warns of ‘conspiracy’ to destabilize N...