Mumbai, February 18
Nepal exited from the group stage once again while playing the ICC T20 World Cup for the third time. After losing the first three matches consecutively, Nepal was confirmed to be out of the group stage, but on Tuesday, they secured a consolation victory by defeating Scotland by 7 wickets.
Although Nepal had set a target of reaching the Super 8, consecutive defeats in the opening matches meant that the goal could not be achieved this time. Nepal’s performance in both batting and bowling was weak in the initial games.
However, in the fourth match against Scotland, Nepal showed improvement and registered their first World Cup win in 12 years. Sompal Kami shone in bowling, while Dipendra Singh Airee, Kushal Bhurtel, Aasif Sheikh, and Gulshan Jha contributed with the bat.
Although Nepal failed to reach the Super 8, winning one match brought relief to some extent.
Along with Dipendra, players like Sompal Kami and Sher Malla achieved individual milestones. However, the Nepali team could not perform according to their potential on a stage as big as the World Cup.
Out of the 15-member squad, 14 players got the opportunity to play in this World Cup. Aarif Sheikh, Sher Malla, Lalit Rajbanshi, Lokesh Bam, and Nandan Yadav made their T20 World Cup debuts.
Here is an overall analysis of the performances of Nepali players:
Rohit Paudel
Rohit Kumar Paudel is the captain under whom Nepal played the T20 World Cup twice. Under his leadership, Nepal qualified for the tournament on both occasions. Though he has built an image as a successful captain in Nepali cricket, his record in the T20 World Cup has not been impressive.
Nepal had lost six consecutive World Cup matches under his captaincy. While Rohit holds the record for captaining Nepal in the most T20 World Cup matches, the performance did not match expectations. His own performance as team leader was also below expectations this time. Rohit lacked consistency with the bat, scoring 83 runs in four matches.
He scored 39 against England in the first match, showing promise, but failed to perform in the subsequent games. He scored 23 against Italy, 5 against the West Indies, and 16 against Scotland. Against Scotland, he also bowled 2 overs, conceding 12 runs and taking 1 wicket, providing a breakthrough after Scotland’s aggressive start.
Dipendra Singh Airee
For vice-captain Dipendra Singh Airee, this World Cup became memorable. Promoted to number four, he played as Nepal’s key all-rounder. Most importantly, he scored Nepal’s first T20 World Cup half-century in 12 years.
He became the second Nepali player to score a World Cup half-century. His 58 against West Indies is the highest individual score by a Nepali player in a World Cup. Previously, in 2014, opener Subash Khakurel had scored 56 in Nepal’s debut T20 World Cup in Bangladesh.
Dipendra also played a key role in Nepal’s win against Scotland, scoring an unbeaten 50 as Nepal secured its first win in 12 years.
He was the first Nepali to score 100 runs in this edition and is now Nepal’s highest run-scorer in T20 World Cups. He scored 44 against England, 17 against Italy, 58 against the West Indies, and 50* against Scotland, totalling 169 runs in four matches. He also took 2 wickets.
Kushal Bhurtel
Nepal’s weak batting was partly due to the openers failing in the first three matches. Bhurtel scored 78 runs in four matches.
He made 29 against England but then scored only 5 and 1 in the next two matches. In the fourth match, he returned to form with an aggressive 43 off 35 balls, hitting 1 four and 4 sixes.
Aasif Sheikh
The other opener, Aasif Sheikh, had a similar experience. He scored 71 runs in four matches.
He made 7 against England, 20 against Italy, 11 against the West Indies, and 33 against Scotland. Behind the stumps, he was not very impactful, taking just one catch each against England and Scotland.
Aarif Sheikh
Known mainly as an ODI player, Aarif has recently improved in T20S. After strong performances in qualifiers and the Nepal Premier League, he earned his first T20 World Cup call-up. Batting at number five, he scored 10 against England, 27 against Italy (Nepal’s highest individual score in that match), and 2 against the West Indies.
Lokesh Bam
Making his debut in this edition, Lokesh impressed with an unbeaten 39 against England (4 fours, 2 sixes), including consecutive sixes off Jofra Archer. However, he managed only 3 against Italy and 13 against the West Indies.
Gulshan Jha
There were high expectations from Gulshan Jha, but batting at number seven, he could not meet them. Despite his pace and height, he did not bowl in the tournament. He scored 3, 1, and 11 in the first three matches. Against Scotland, promoted to number five, he scored an unbeaten 24 in partnership with Dipendra. As Nepal’s only left-handed batter, his overall performance was disappointing.
Sandeep Lamichhane
Expectations were high from Sandeep Lamichhane, who was playing his second World Cup and had vast franchise experience worldwide. However, he managed only 1 wicket in four matches.
He took 1/25 against England but went wicketless against Italy, the West Indies, and Scotland. He also scored 5 runs against Italy. His performance did not reflect his experience on the big stage.
Nandan Yadav
Medium pacer Nandan Yadav made his World Cup debut and played all four matches, taking 5 wickets.
He took 2 wickets against England, 1 against West Indies, and 2 against Scotland. However, he did not always complete his full quota of overs.
Karan KC
Experienced pacer Karan KC had a forgettable tournament. Having played two T20 World Cups, he remains wicketless in the tournament’s history.
He conceded runs in all matches but did contribute 20 runs with the bat across three games.
Sompal Kami
The most experienced player in the squad, Sompal Kami, became the only Nepali to play in three T20 World Cups. His tournament was mixed but improved toward the end.
He scored an unbeaten 26 against West Indies and then took 3/25 against Scotland, including three wickets in the death overs.
Lalit Rajbanshi
Spinner Lalit played only one match, against Italy, where he conceded 19 runs in one over without taking a wicket. Though part of the 2024 squad, he did not play then either.
Sher Malla
Spinner Sher Malla made his debut against England and took Phil Salt’s wicket on his very first ball. However, he conceded 35 runs in 3 overs and did not get further opportunities.
Sundeep Jora
Sandeep Jora, playing his second T20 World Cup, got only one match this edition as well, against Scotland.
Basir Ahmad
All-rounder Basir Ahmad, selected after a strong performance in the NPL, however, he did not get a chance to play and remained on the bench throughout.
