Nepal has defeated the USA by 6 wickets in its second match of the ICC cricket world cup 2023 qualifier underway in Zimbabwe.
In the match held today, Nepal overcame the victory target of 208 runs at the loss of 4 wickets in the 43rd over, thanks largely to a patient 77 runs in 114 balls by Bhim Sarki.
Chasing a modest target after restricting the opponent to a par score of 207 runs in 50 overs, Nepal faltered in the beginning after losing 3 wickets in the 26th over with only 112 runs on the board. However, the unbroken partnership for the fifth wicket between Bhim Sarki and Dipendra Singh Airee (39) leading to 50 runs in 49 balls ensured a win for Nepal.
Kushal Bhurtel also contributed 39 runs while Aasif Sheikh, captain Rohit Paudel and Kushal Malla scored 12, 16 and 13 runs respectively.
Earlier, electing to field first after winning the toss, Nepal restricted the USA to 207 runs in the stipulated 50 overs. Karan KC was the pick of the bowlers, who took 4 wickets for 33 runs in 9 overs, with 3 maiden. It also earned him the player of the match award. Gulshan Jha took 3 wickets while Dipendra Singh Airee took 2 and Lalit Rajbansi took 1 wicket.
After a poor start, USA managed to get to a respectable score with a brisk century by Shayan Jahangir, who scored 100 runs in just 79 balls, including 3 six and 10 fours. Jahangir was one of the only four batsmen who scored in double figures for the USA.
This is Nepal's first win in the qualifier, after losing the opening match to host Zimbabwe by 8 wickets. Nepal will now play against the West Indies on June 22.
The Netherlands is the fifth team in Group A including Nepal. Host Zimbabwe leads the points table with 4 points while West Indies is in second position with 2 points while Nepal is in the third position with 2 points as well.
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