Nepal defeated Australian Capital Territory (ACT) by six wickets in the second practice match today, thanks to an all-round performance from Dipendra Singh Airee.
Chasing a modest target of 97 runs, Nepal reached 98/4 in just 13.2 overs. Nepal’s top three batters failed to reach double figures, with opener Bhim Sharki scoring 8, Aasif Sheikh 4, and skipper Rohit Paudel 9. Nepal stumbled to 25/3 early in the chase.
A 39-run fourth-wicket stand between Gulshan Jha and Airee stabilized the innings. Gulshan contributed 23 before being dismissed. Airee then guided Nepal home with an unbeaten 42 off 31 balls, including 1 four and 3 sixes, while Aarif Sheikh remained not out on 11. For ACT, I. Rehman took 2 wickets, while L. Evans and D. Dubey claimed one each.
Earlier, ACT were bowled out for just 96 runs in 17.2 overs, with no batter able to withstand Nepal’s disciplined bowling attack. N. Bros top-scored with 16, while K. Yog, McNamara, and T. Higan made 15 runs each. J. Smith added 10, but the rest failed to reach double digits.
For Nepal, Dipendra Singh Airee and Shahab Alam each took 4 wickets, with Airee conceding only 13 runs in 4 overs and Shahab just 12 runs in his spell. Gulshan Jha and Rohit Paudel chipped in with one wicket apiece.
Nepal had earlier won the first practice match by 41 runs. After the Top End T20 Series, Nepal was scheduled to play additional practice matches. The team will now face South Australia on August 28 and 30 in two T20s and one ODI.
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