The Nepalese national cricket team faced a close defeat against Hong Kong in the third-place match of the ACC Men’s Premier Cup 2024. Additionally, Nepal’s bid to qualify for the ACC Men’s Emerging Teams Asia Cup fell short following a defeat.
Nepal faced a defeat against UAE in the semifinal of the tournament on Friday, confirming their exit from the Asia Cup race. The champion of the tournament will earn a berth in the Asia Cup, while the top three teams will secure places in the ACC Men’s Emerging Teams Asia Cup.
Choosing to bat first, Nepal posted an average score of 139/8. Nepal had a shaky start as Kushal Bhurtel fell for a third consecutive duck in just the second ball. They were 50/4 after losing Aasif Sheikh (5), Sompal Kami promoted to number three for 12 and Rohit Paudel for 21. Sundeep Jora and Kushal Malla assisted sluggish 21 and 13 runs. It was Dipendra Singh Airee who top-scored for Nepal with 29-ball 44*. He scored four boundaries and three sixes in his knock.
For Hong Kong, Ayush Shukla picked up three wickets. Ateequl Iqbal, Yasim Murtaza and Ehsan Khan also grabbed one wicket each.
In response, Hong Kong chased the total in 19.4 overs losing six wickets. Opener Anshuman Rath played the anchor role for Hong Kong and remained unbeaten till the end to win it for his side. He scored 64* from 50 balls that included four boundaries and two sixes. Apart from him, Babar Hayat also made 26 runs. Eight runs were required from the last over and the captain handed the ball to Lalit Rajbanshi. Nasrulla Rana scored those runs in just three balls to win it for his side.
For Nepal, Sompal Kami picked up three wickets (4-0-33-2). Dipendra Singh Airee also grabbed two wickets (4-0-27-2).
