Nepal has a realistic chance to beat Papua New Guinea

-
Nepal finally got their much sought after win,much to everyone’s relief in the World Cup Qualifiers in Zimbabwe.

The victory over Hong Kong  comes at a crucial juncture as Nepal vies  for the One Day International(ODI) Status spot.

Having failed in their attempt to reach the Super Sixes, there is still plenty at stake for Nepal. The last ODI Status spot is up for grabs, and, undoubtedly, it is a very big prize.

For a country like Nepal earning the ODI Status for four years  means  a lot.  If they succeed in getting it ,it will be a significant accomplishment,and they  will immensely benefit on all fronts of the sport.

It means  Nepal will be eligible  for more fundings from the international cricket body for the development of cricket and gets to play more international competitions.

Nepal has to battle it out for the play-off positions from 7th to 10th. Four teams,  the Netherlands, Hong Kong, Nepal and Papua New Guinea are in the play-offs.

The Netherlands is out of the equation  because it  had gained ODI status by virtue of winning the ICC World  Cricket  League Championship.

Thus the fight for the last ODI  status spot  has come down to Nepal, Papua New Guinea and Hong Kong.

There are many play -off  scenarios. One is,should Nepal prevail over Papua New Guinea, and Hong Kong  gets beaten by the Netherlands, Nepal earns the ODI  status.

In other  scenarios, either Papua New Guinea or Hong Kong win  their  respective matches, they can pip Nepal to the finish line.

Either way, the play-offs are unpredictable and intriguing, to say the least. Going into the play-offs, Nepal has a realistic chance of attaining the ODI status provided they turn in a solid team effort.

Against  winless Papua New Guinea, Nepal  has a big edge,especially in the bowling department.Long as bowlers click  and put in a polished performance , they are most likely to be in the driver's seat.

Spinners will have a big role to play as Papua New Guinea  is susceptible to spin. Nonetheless, they have to be at their very best to strike it rich.

Given the importance of the match, they cannot  allow mediocrity seep in. They have to carry the momentum forward and remain focused and accurate.

Batting has been Achilles heel for Nepal and continues to haunt them. Poor batting has cost them  a good number of high stake matches lately. 

They cannot afford another lackluster batting performance that could ruin their chances to win the ODI  status spot and cost the team dearly.

The batsmen have to step up and get their act together. They must overcome the shortcomings and get their mojo back .Forgetting not, the pitch is more batsman friendly,therefore, it is important that they make the most of it.

Now is the time  for batsmen to make substantial contributions to put the team in a winning position. It is a now or never situation. There is no excuse for  another batting failure.

Going back to the match between Nepal vs Hong Kong,the former got in the win column, largely to excellent bowling and gutsy batting from two unlikely youngsters.

Nepal  tottering at 66 for 5,  the game  seemed slipping away. It appeared as if another inept  batting collapse  was imminent.

However, young Turks Rohit Kumar Paudel (48 )and  Sompal Kami  (37 )  came to the team’s rescue. It was a gutsy, confident, aggressive and determined batting by the two

The 89 run partnership they shared for the sixth wicket was enough to bail out Nepal and dash Hong Kong’s dream of reaching the Super Sixes.

High schooler Paudel, a hard hitting batsman, has fittingly  replied to the burden of expectations rested on his young shoulders. He is a bright spot on the  team’s shaky batting lineup that is causing much consternation.

It is just the beginning of a long journey for the man of the match teenage batting star. All-rounder Kami dazzled with both bat and ball,proving himself as a valuable asset to the team.

The bowlers bounced  back,following a subdued performance against  Afghanistan,restricting Hong Kong  to a paltry 153 . Spinner duo Sandeep Lamichhane(3 wickets) and Basant Regmi  (2 wickets)  were at their best and dominated the proceedings.


Like always , bowling will be key to Nepal’s success against Namibia. The bowlers will need to replicate their performance.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

An upset in the making : FC Chitwan vs Butwal Lumbini FC

-
  FC Chitwan  vs Dhangadi FC:  An upset in the making  By Sushil Thapa, Fairfax , Va One of the tournament favorites Dhangadhi FC  are up against undefeated FC Chitwan in the National Super League  at Dashrath stadium Saturday. With one loss, one win and  one draw , they are in second  position behind Butwal Lumbini on goal difference  in standings. They had a golden opportunity to take the pole position in the match against Lalitpur City FC but only to squander, Despite taking the crucial lead,they failed  to defend and had to settle  for a point.As a matter of fact, before they surged ahead, they could have trailed behind,had it not been the spot kick miss  by  Lalitpur City FC. Also Lalitpur City had the upper hand for most part of the game. They had the lion share of attacks but were let down by poor finish. Dhangadhi FC did survive the opponent’s relentless onslaught as the defense barely held their ground. I would ad...
Read more

Weak batting bogs down Team Nepal

-
Image
The men’s national cricket team of Nepal returned to action amidst high expectations last month. The team had a hectic schedule as they participated in three  tournaments consecutively in a little over a month.  Since Nepal hosted the tournaments cricket  buffs across the country had  a heightened air of  expectancy. Nepal’s recent success on home turf had local fans optimistic about their  team’s chances. The ICC Men’s Cricket  World  Cup  League 2024/27 and T20 International Triangular series featuring Nepal,the Netherlands and Namibia  were the bigger and important tournaments. The  two unofficial one day international series against Canada provided  a perfect platform to emerging  players knocking on the selectors door.  For the second one day series against Canada, Cricket Association of Nepal fielded Nepal A,comprising experienced players and rising stars who have been performing consistently in domestic  a...
Read more

Nepal must defy odds against Netherlands in the World Cup opener

-
Image
Come June 4th, the men’s national cricket team of Nepal kicks off their  much anticipated ICC Men’s Twenty20  World  Cup cricket tournament against the Netherlands  in  Grand Prairie  Stadium, Dallas,Texas. This is  Nepal’s second appearance in one of the world’s biggest cricket mega-events. It may be recalled that they  made their debut in the 2014 World  Cup held in  Bangladesh. If my memory serves me right as debutants Nepal skippered  by Paras Khadka put on quite a show, winning  two matches. They got the better of Afghanistan and Hong Kong and lost to Bangladesh in the first stage of the round-robin group league format. Although they were tied on points with Bangladesh, the latter advanced to Super 10 with a higher net run rate. Back to the ongoing Twenty20 World Cup,apart from  Nepal and the Netherlands,formidable Test-playing nations in the likes of South Africa, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh ranked 4th,7th ...
Read more