Kathmandu, October 11
Nepal defeated Canada by 24 runs in their opening match of the ICC Cricket World Cup League 2 ODI series in Oman on Sunday.
Chasing a target of 236 at Al Amerat Cricket Ground, Canada were bowled out for 211 in 48.4 overs.
Aaron Johnson top-scored for Canada with 44 runs, while Samit Gohel made 35. Akhil Kumar remained unbeaten on 30, and Shreyas Movva and captain Hamza Tariq contributed 26 runs each.
For Nepal, Karan KC, Lalit Rajbanshi, Sandeep Lamichhane and Nandan Yadav claimed two wickets apiece.
Earlier, Nepal posted 235 all out in 50 overs after being asked to bat first. Captain Rohit Paudel led the innings with a century, scoring 101 off 127 balls, including eight fours and a six. Gulshan Jha added a quickfire 48 off 34 balls, while Arjun Kumal contributed 23.
For Canada, Akhil Kumar took four wickets, Sukhjinder Singh claimed three and Zahid Shirzad picked up two.
Despite the victory, Nepal’s hopes of finishing in the top four of the League 2 standings had already ended after Oman defeated Canada in the opening match of the series. Nepal will now focus on retaining their ODI status.
Following Sunday’s win, Nepal climbed to sixth in the standings with 26 points from 33 matches. Canada dropped to seventh with 25 points from 34 matches.
