Nepal faced disappointment on home soil as they failed to clinch the T20I tri-nation series title, losing to the Netherlands by 4 wickets in a closely contested final at TU Cricket Ground.
The Netherlands successfully chased down the target of 185 runs for victory with just 3 balls remaining in the match.
Michael Levitt led the charge for the Netherlands, completing his half-century with an impressive 54 runs off 29 balls, including 6 fours and 3 sixes. Sybrand Engelbrecht narrowly missed his half-century by 2 runs, contributing 48 runs in 29 balls with 4 fours and 3 sixes. Max O’Dowd added 23 runs individually.
Despite a commendable effort by Kushal Malla, who took 4 wickets for Nepal, the team fell short of securing a win.
Opting to bat after winning the toss, Nepal posted a total of 184 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in 20 overs. While the top-order batsmen showed promise, the lower-order struggled against the Netherlands bowlers, preventing Nepal from posting a substantial score.
Opener Kushal Bhurtel departed early at 23 runs in 3.3 overs. Captain Rohit Poudel contributed 25 runs in 19 balls, forming a crucial 59-run partnership with opener Aasif Sheikh for the third wicket. Aasif missed his half-century by 3 runs, scoring 1 four and 3 sixes in 37 balls. Gulsan Jha added 26 runs in 11 balls with 3 sixes, but the lower-order batsmen could not provide the necessary support.
Dipendra Singh Airee managed only 1 run, while Karan KC scored 9 runs, and Aarif Sheikh failed to open his account, resulting in Nepal losing the opportunity to post a formidable score.
