Nepal must aim to salvage pride against Hong Kong

There was no respite for Nepal as they succumbed to yet another defeat, the third in a row, at the hands of Afghanistan,putting themselves on the cusp of World Cup Qualifiers  exit in ZImbabwe. 

At this point, Nepal has been left with a slim mathematical  chance to advance to the round of super sixes.

They are languishing at the bottom of the table with the lowest net run -rate . As things stand, prospects for the team looks increasingly dim.

Only an overwhelming and decisive victory over Hong Kong with  a very  healthy net run -rate enough to overtake both Hong Kong and Afghanistan in their final match can see them through to the next round.

The target is statistically improbable,especially for Nepal that is underperforming and failing to meet expectations.That said, it is a sport and anything can/could happen. Let us keep our fingers crossed.

For the second successive match Nepal won the toss but the decision to bat first backfired as they crashed to another defeat,leaving them teetering on the edge of a cliff.

Against Afghanistan , Nepal  had to  play to win to  keep their super sixes hopes alive.  Batting  first, they needed a solid innings and a very competitive target  to keep the opposition on the back foot.

The  batsmen  carried a huge burden in a pressure situation to  score big but fell agonizingly short of a fighting total.

Skipper Paras Khadka, once again, let his bat do the talking.He anchored the innings with the help of a swashbuckling 75.

After he departed, the team was back  in familiar territory, the trickle of runs slowed to a drip. Minus Khadka’s knock, Dipendra Singh Airee  (32) Gyanendra Malla(23) and Aarif Sheikh(23) made small but handy contributions.

The Afghan  bowling attack  spearheaded by skipper Rashid Khan did well to end Nepal’s innings in the 49th over  and restricting the total to 194 runs.

The onus was back on  Nepal bowlers, but they failed to produce the form to upstage the opponent. Both frontline spinners Sandeep Lamichhane and Basant Regmi struggled  quite a bit and came under assault.

Captain Khadka employed as many as seven bowlers with very limited success. Young medium  pacer Airee  with two wickets was  the pick of the bowlers. By and large,the bowlers were far from their best.

Needing to win big, Afghanistan  did it in  style in  just 38th over with some sensible and aggressive batting.

Now Afghanistan anxiously awaits  the result of the Nepal vs Hong Kong  fixture. Their fate entirely hinges on the outcome.

The math is very simple, a  narrow win for Nepal  means Afghanistan are in the round of  super sixes,otherwise,Hong Kong advances. 

It is a tall order for Nepal  as they  need to win big  to get past Afghanistan’s  net run-rate.

Afghanistan entered the competition with high expectations and the favorites tag. Contrary to expectations, it has been a reversal of fortunes for them.

This is a game  called cricket full of uncertainties.And there is no such thing called guaranteed or granted.

Winless Nepal has to salvage some pride  against Hong Kong. They are up against a  side that  is desperately in pursuit of victory who will throw everything to  assure themselves  the most important success.

We have all seen it , what Hong Kong is capable of ? As for Nepal , they must put in individual commitment to a group effort to succeed.That’s all I have to say.