On a day when three teams had a chance to claim the vital second position on the table behind Uganda, which is the group leader, Nepal defeated Italy by eight wickets and Bermuda defeated USA by five wickets, resulting in Nepal overtaking USA and Bermuda on the points table based on net run rate.[break]
Uganda tops the standings accumulating eight points from four wins and a loss, while Nepal, USA and Bermuda, who all have equal six points, finished second, third and fourth on better net rate. Nepal´s run rate is 0.715, the USA´s 0.456 and Bermuda´s -0.682. Uganda had lost to Oman by seven wickets on Saturday night. The bottom two teams Oman and Italy are relegated to the Division 4.
Winning the toss and sending Italy to take strike first in St David´s Cricket Club ground, Nepal restricted the opponent side to 127/9 in 50 overs with tight bowling and raced to the target losing only two wickets in just 14.5 overs.
Man-of-the match Rahul Vishwakarma, playing his first match in the tournament, claimed three key wickets to restrict Italy to the low total.
Shakti Gauchan sent Italy opener Hayden Patrizi (4) back to the pavilion in 7.2 overs, while another opener A Northcote (10) fell to Sanjam Regmi shortly. Italy lost its third wicket when Basanta Regmi had Damian Crowley (3) caught by Gauchan in 13.5 overs with just 22 runs on board.
Then Vishwakarma took three wickets -- Peter Anthony Petricola (31), Carl Sandri (39) and Alessandro Banora (2).
Sanjam Regmi took another three wickets, while Gauchan remained the most economic Nepali bowler with figures 10-2-15-2.
Sitting third on the ladder after four rounds, Nepal was in need of a convincing victory to try and knock USA out of second position. Chasing 128 for victory Nepali openers Subash Khakurel and Pradeep Airee wasted no time to put up an 87-run partnership from 12 overs. Khakurel smashed 47 runs off 35 balls. Captain Paras Khadka smashed 22 from only 8 balls, while Gyanendra Malla struck two shots -- one six and one four -- to still be at the crease alongside Airee (42 not out) when Nepali total reached 129, and victory in the 15th over. Luis Di Giglio and Fida Hussain took one wicket apiece.
In the most anticipated match of the day that decided the fate of Nepal, host Bermuda defeated USA by five wickets at the National Sports Stadium.
USA needed to win the match to guarantee a top two finish, while Bermuda needed to win the encounter to avoid the possibility of relegation in the event of Oman defeating Uganda.
The USA posted a challenging 220/9 in 50 overs with its opener Akeem Dodson hitting a composed 50, and later Neil McGarrell, who in the past played Test cricket for the West Indies, scoring 45 runs off 43 balls.
Seemingly, less favorite Bermuda chased the target with ease for the loss of five wickets in 44.4 overs with man of the match Chris Douglas making a brilliant 89 runs from 75 balls that also included nine fours and three sixes.
Elsewhere, Oman upset the favorite Uganda registering a seven-wicket victory.
Nepal skipper Khadka was pleased that his side´s hard work paid off with a top two finish. "We had to make sure that we maintain a good run rate. Pressure was always there, after having lost the first two games so we had to step it up. Hats off to the boys for having played so well and for their determination. We had to wait for the results of the other matches, and then it happened for us. They say that when you work hard, things and luck work for you," Khadka told ICC.
"It was a nervous wait for the other results. After we finished we had to wait for about two hours, but thank god we hung in there and it worked for us," he added.
How far are we from World Cup and ODI status?
After securing place in the World Cup Qualifiers, Nepal is a step away from reaching World Cup and getting the One-Day status.
In the tournaments format developed by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for its associate nations, World Cricket League Championship is the highest tournament.
Currently, there are eight teams -- Ireland, Netherlands, Kenya, Scotland, Afghanistan, Canada, United Arab Emirates and Namibia -- in the World Cricket League Championship. The top two teams of the championship following home and away round robin league will directly qualify for the World Cup.
The remaining six teams will join Division 2 teams -- Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong, Nepal and Uganda in the ICC World Cup Qualifiers. The top two teams of the qualifiers will go to the World Cup. The third and fourth placed teams will get One-Day status along with the four associate teams qualified to the World Cup.
Lara says he is Nepal´s fan
West Indies cricket legend Brian Lara said that he is a big fan of Nepal. On the eve of the Division 3 final, Lara has encouraged Nepali cricket fans in an interaction on his twitter. "All the best 2 Nepal in the finals may the best team win. I´m a big fan of urs n Uganda´s cricket," Lara twitted on his twitter account along with a picture with two Nepali fans in Bermuda.
In reply to a request to cheer for Nepal in the match against Italy by a Nepali fan with twitter account ´itscoolsky´, Lara has replied, "I will get out there".
Related story
Indianapolis Colts’ music-loving owner Jim Irsay dies at age 65
