I.I.M.IKHERIYA c Gauchan b Das 13 (14,10,2,0)
N.G.KARIM c Lohani d Das 6 (30,21,1,0)
M.Z.SIDAT c Chhetri b Das 6 (46,28,0,0)
M.K.QADIR c Chhettri b Das 2 (13,11,0,0)
S.K.R.SHAH c Lohani b Das 4 (26,22,0,0)
J.M.KHORAWA+ lbw B.Regmi 6 (39,31,0,0)
Z.A.GULAM c Gauchan b B.Regmi 6 (39,19,1,0)
M.S.YOUNG* lbw B.Regmi 0 (1,1,0,0)
C.S.C.PUSPUSSEN c Gauchan b B.Regmi 4 (22,14,0,0)
M.A.A.KOLIYA not out 11 (16,14,1,1)
I.S.LIU lbw B.Regmi 0 (2,2,0,0)
Extras (5 LB, 7W) 12
Total 70 (all out) (28.5 overs)

17-1 (1), 21-2 (2), 24-3 (4), 34-4 (3), 35-5 (5), 53-6 (6), 53-7(8), 57-8 (7), 70-9 (9), 70-10 (11)

M.ALAM 5-1-21-0
B.K.DAS 10-2-16-5 (5w)
P.KHADKA 6-1-13-0 (2w)
B.REGMI 5.5-2-8-5
R.K.PRADHAN 1-0-7-0
S.P.GAUCHAN 1-1-0-0

Nepal Innings

P.P.LOHANI not out 2 (1,1,0,0)
M.ALAM not out 0 (1,0,0,0)

DNB: B.K.DAS*, M.K.CHHETRI+, P.KHADKA, S.P.GAUCHAN, S.REGMI, S.VESAWKAR, G.MALLA, R.K.PRADHAN, B.REGMI
Extras 0
Total 2-0 (0.1 overs)

M.A.A.KOLIYA 0.1-0-2-0

Their efforts wrecked German innings as they were bowled out for 69 in 39.4 overs and achieved the target in 20.2 overs with Mahesh Chhetri remaining unbeaten on 23. Man of the match Basant finished with an impressive figure of 5.5-4-4-3 while Mehboob, who bowled his 10 overs in a spell, got three wickets for 24 runs.

It was first time after 2001 ICC Trophy that the two country faced each other. Nepal had defeated Germany by two runs in the earlier meeting, but this time they proved strong enough to bowl out them for the lowest total of the opening day.

Germany won the toss and elected to bat first. With Mehboob firing and captain Binod Das bowling tight line, they were under pressure immediately. Binod got a wicket in the first over and within 10 overs, it looked like a lop-sided match.

“We probably lost the match in first 10 overs, they bowled very well,” German captain Grammar Sommer said. Asif Khan topscored for them with 22 runs.

Once spinners came into action, it was more difficult for the European side to get runs. Shakti Guachan bowled seven overs giving away six runs for a wicket while Raj Kumar Pradhan gave 11 runs for a wicket in three overs.

Nepal’s batting was not on par to the bowling as Paresh Lohani failed to open account. Sharad Vesawkar (12) and Shakti Gauchan (11) got each got start but failed to stay long. It was opener Mahesh Chhetri, whose 23 in 54 balls, pushed Nepal to victory. Gyanendra Malla remained unbeaten on three runs.

“I am happy for my team. It’s important for us to get good start and we got it,” Binod said. “We did well with the bowling but we could have batted better. Anyway, a win is a win and it came so comfortably for us.”

“We are obviously disappointed but we are happy that we picked up three wickets,” Sommer said. In other matches, USA beat Mozambique by 9 wickets after restricting them to 148/7 in 50 overs; Norway beat Vanuatu by 177 runs; Botswana defeated Bahamas by 70 runs and Afghanistan edged Japan by 70 runs.

IMAGE: CricketEurope/JCB (Courtesy: WCL Div 5 Official Site)

Nepal beat Bahamas by 201 runs before beating hosts Guernsey by 70 runs. Nepal scored 209/7 in 50 overs and bowled out Guernsey for 139.

Against Guernsey, Nepal were at one stage in the mire at 65 for 5 against some excellent Guernsey bowling. They were rescued by a partnership of 103 between Sarad Veswakar and Mehboob Alam, the latter providing the impetus with 45 off 59 balls with Veswakar making 72 from 139 balls.

Basant Regmi remained unbeaten on 20 while Binod Das got 15 not out.

Guernsey were well aware of the potency of Nepal’s seam attack and Alam struck immediately with the wicket of Mark Jefferies with one of his big inswingers. The wickets of Smit, Oliver and Ravenscroft followed quickly and Guernsey were soon four down with only 40 on the board.

Skipper Stuart Le Prevost with a hard fought 41 and Jeremy Frith with 24 steadied the ship and were rebuilding nicely before the injured Frith, batting with a runner, was run out. Le Prevost kept going and appeared unlucky to be given leg before. With his dismissal the home side’s chances were fading and Rajkumar Pradhan’s legbreaks wrapped things up with 4 for 36.

Mehboob and Paras Khadka each took two wickets.

The match was a very useful exercise for both teams. Guernsey competed very well and the real difference between the two sides was the sheer quality of Nepal’s seam attack which could be too much for most of their opponents in Jersey.

Nepal knew that they had been tested by a decent Guernsey side seeking to demonstrate that it would not be out of its depth at WCL Division 5 level. The massive gulf between these two teams and the Bahamas suggests that the Bahamas will struggle in Jersey and that Nepal will be strongly fancied to reach the final. Bahamas lost to Guernsey too.

Earlier, Nepal crushed the Bahamas by 201 runs at the Port Soif ground.

Nepal batted first and made 272 for 7 in their allotted 50 overs. Paras Khadka top scored with an unbeaten 63 while Shakti Gauchan with 50 and Gyanandra Malla with 48 were the other main contributors.

G Armstrong (2 for 19) and N Ekanyake (2 for 42) returned the best figures for the Bahamas.
The Bahamas got off to an awful start and were 6 for 3 after 4 overs. Then 60 for 6 before being dismissed for 71 in 31 overs. C Atkinson (19) and M Ford (18) were their top scorers as Mehaboob Alab (2 for 16 in 6 overs), Binod Das (2 for 20 in 6 overs) and Rajkumar Pradam (3 for 19 in 9.4 overs) ran through them.

From CricketEurope.com

How popular is cricket in your country?
Cricket is a game that has been gaining popularity in Nepal and is now the second most popular game only after soccer. There has been a continuous increase in the number of players being involved in cricket and the number of cricket tournaments in all the six development regions has also increased.

What challenges do you face in the growth of the game?
The challenge for the growth of cricket in Nepal is infrastructure development. We have a limited number of grounds and the maintenance of the ground is a difficult task.

How much schools cricket is available in your country to aid the future development of players?
There has been a lot of involvement of schools in the U-15 Cricket tournaments in Nepal as it is an inter-school cricket tournament and there are a lot of schools participating. We expect the numbers of schools competing in this tournament to continue to rise.

What are your expectations for the event and how far do you think you will be able to progress through the WCL structure?
We are very confident of securing first or second position in the ICC World Cricket League Division 5 tournament and qualifying for World Cricket League Division 4 tournament to be held in Tanzania as we have been practising hard for this tournament. We certainly are looking forward to progressing through every WCL and reaching the World Cup qualifier.

Do you think cricket in your country will be in a very different position to its current state in ten years time? What are the reasons for this?
Yes, Nepal will probably play the ICC Cricket World Cup in ten years time as cricket is very much growing in this nation - it can even overtake soccer as the most popular game in the country. Besides the Cricket Association of Nepal, many schools, clubs and colleges have been regularly conducting various tournaments and have been increasing prizes to the participating teams and the outstanding players. Nepal is expecting to play in the ICC World Cup Cricket and in ten years time we believe that it is possible.

Originally appeared in WCL Div 5 Official Site

His PCB Academy played three one-day matches against Nepal winning two and suffering an upset loss in the last. At the end of his first ever Nepal visit, Ahmed shared a few thoughts about Nepali cricket and more with NepalCricket.com. Here are the excerpts:

After playing three matches against Nepal, what you have to say about Nepali cricket?

They have the talent; they can build a team, no doubt about it. Only the problem is facilities. If you could give them proper environment and facilities, Nepal can go up. Unless there are facilities, you can not create a good team. Cricketers have the talent, so it now up to management to give them the facilities.

For me, the most important thing is also creating interest among people. Of course there were a good number of people on the last match, but there should be more of them. There were three or four good players playing against us. They played like a team so team spirit is there and that’s a good point.

What one thing of Nepali team impressed you most?

Team spirit. Whenever they got an opportunity, they were all charged up. This is a very good sign for a team dreaming to go at the top level.

What difference you found between Nepali and Pakistani players?

I think, Pakistani players have talent and they got more facilities. Sri Lanka were at one time where Nepal is. Kenya were and Bangladesh were but they provided facilities to the players and that have paid for them.

Did Nepal meet your pre-tour expectations?

Frankly, I expected better than this. I expected better facilities, better environment. When I came to know there is only one ground, it was really disappointing for me.

In terms of cricketing, did you expect such a result in Nepal?

Definitely. You know, cricket is a very funny game. Even one ball can change the match. Any bigger team can fall apart and any weaker team can win. Like Bangladesh Kenya and this year Ireland did to us.

Although my team is not a Pakistan national team, there are four players who have played for Pakistan and others are knocking on the doors. So, I believe it’s a great achievement for Nepal to beat us today. They will now go with higher confidence in the Div 5 and I hope they will win there. And, we will be happy.

What needs to be done to improve Nepali cricket?

There is only one ground. You need more grounds and better pitches. You need flat batting tracks where bowlers get more difficulty bowling to batsmen. For batsmen, it will be easier to score runs, and if they score hundreds, it will build their confidence. You can expect to improve batting of a team making them play on the pitches where they can not make shots, and ball turns and bounces uneven.

What specifically needs to be improved in batting, bowling and fielding?

They need to improve a lot in all that. While batting, they either block it or hit it. They need to improvise which is not there, that’s because of the track. You can get singles at mid-on or mid-off on this turning and uneven bouncing track. If you let them play on batting wickets, they will know how to steal runs.

In bowling, you need to find out heavy built youngsters who can bowl really fast. If you have academy, you need to find such boys of 15 to 16 years old and teach them how to bowl.

Do you feel Nepal can qualify for the World Cup?

Yes. They have started the journey to it. If they get the facilities here, they can make it. And, I am not just saying it, I mean it.

Spinners helped Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) XI registered an upset victory over visiting Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Academy in the final of three one-day matches at the TU Cricket Ground on Sunday.

Brought in after the visitors hit 47 runs of first two overs while chasing lowly 136 for victory, the spinners did the trick for Nepal and the stand-in captain Paras Khadka walked away with praise for his experimental decisions that proved successful.

PBC Academy were bowled out for 121 in 28.3 overs with off-spinner Sanjam Regmi emerging the hero with a more than impressive figure of 8.3-4-6-5. Basant Regmi took three for 28 in 8 overs while Shakti Gauchan and Sarad Vesawkar each grabbed a wicket.

Ahmed Shahzad hit pacer Amrit Bhattarai for five fours in the first over while his partner Raheel Majeed hit four boundaries and a six off Dhirendra Chand in the second over that also included a bye four. With 47/0 after 12 balls, PCB looked like cruising to a quick victory before lunch but Paras brought in Shakti and Basant.

Shakti got Majeed (27 off 14 with five fours and a six) in the last over before lunch and Shahzad (32 off 25 with seven fours) holed out one off Basant to Sarad in the first over after lunch to make it 65/2. Six balls later, Basant claimed Khurram Manzoor (1) to make it 76/3 and it was splendid bowling of Sanjam then after.

Pakistanis continued trying to be aggressive while Sanjam’s turn along with innovative field placing by Paras checked runs. Captain Khalid Latif was trapped leg-before at 20 off 22 by Sanjam and he was the third and last man to score in double-digit.

The PCB Academy ended at 121 – 15 runs short of CAN XI’s score after Sanjam got Sohail Khan (6) caught by Sarad and thousands of fans stormed into field to celebrate the amazing comeback victory.

Earlier, Paras won the toss and elected to bat first. Playing without regular captain Binod Das and star allrounder Mehboob Alam, Nepali team was pegged down right from second over when Gyanendra Malla was trapped by Mohamad Aamir.

Aamir, playing his first match on the tour, got five of first six wickets – Paresh Lohani (11) falling to Wahab Riaz to wreck the innings. Nepal went down to 45/6 in 12th over and it looked like it was heading for an embarrassing batting performance before Shakti Guachan rescued the team.

Shakti stayed cool and partnered Mahesh Regmi for 56 runs taking Nepal past three-digit before Mahesh, who was dropped down the order, fell to Imad Wasim, He scored 20 off 50 balls with a four.

Sanjam Regmi (5) and Amrit Bhattarai (6) stayed long enough to help Shakti complete a half-century, the lone by Nepali batsman in the series. Shakti’s unbeaten 50 was scored in 109 balls with five fours and a six. Aamir was pick of te bowler with 5/28 while Shahzad took 2/18 off his seven overs.

Ahmed, who captained Pakistan to U-19 World Cup victory in 2006, scored unbeaten 94 to rescue his team from 53/5 and take the total to 218/7 in 50 overs. CAN XI could only add 109 in 34.2 overs.

Ahmed’s 100-ball knock was played with perfection as the 21-year-old showed a lot of maturity to rescue his team. PCB Academy had started well with openers adding 33 runs before CAN XI captain Binod Das ended Raheel Majeed’s innings. Majeed scored 22 off 26 balls before giving a catch to Paresh Lohani.

Binod forced Khurram Manzoor to edge one to wicket-keeper Mahesh Chhetri four overs later. Manzoor could not score. Paras Khadka bowled a brilliant first ball to undid stumps of captain Khalid Latif (17). Two more quick wickets - one close run-out off Asad Safiq and other a nicely held diving catch by Dipendra Chaudhary off Paras troubled PCB Academy.

Nepali bowlers were bowling hearts out but Ahmed calmly tackled all them. With Ali Asad (16), he added 42 runs for sixth wicket. Left-handed Asad was bowled behind his leg by off-spinner Sanjam Regmi, who together with Basant Regmi, put a lot of pressure.

Sanjam also claimed Imad Wasim (12) who added 23 with Ahmed but then it was the visitor’s say. The pair of Ahmed and No 9 Wahab Riaz added unbeaten 100 runs with such acceleration during the slog overs that Nepal gave away 63 runs in last five overs.

Riaz scored 23 runs in last eight balls he faced to total 37 off 39 balls with a four and three big sixes - two of which were against Shakti Gauchan in an over while Ahmed hit eight fours and two sixes.

Sanjam, who was 2/10 after seven overs, went for 29 runs in nine overs while Binod, with 2/12 in seven, was hit 12 and 14 runs in last two overs. Paras finished 2/21.

Nepal need a strong foundation for the victory but the pace of Pakistani opening bowlers was something they had never played against. With Riaz and Sohail Khan breathing fire, Nepali batsmen could only hit occasional shots.

At 13, Paresh Lohani walked away on an edge, and half of the team was back by the time scoreboard read 20 runs. Sharad Vesawkar, Gyanendra Malla, Dipendra and Mahesh could not reach double-figure.

Paras Khadka played with some authority for 29 off 44 balls hitting three fours and a six while Shakti Guachan (14), Mehboob Alam (17 with two sixes) and Basant Regmi (18) got some runs to help Nepal cross three-digit mark.

“Nepal played well in first innings,” Pakistani coach Ijaz Ahmed said. “But they lack experience.” He also praised bowling of Binod and spinners while adding that his team was under pressure at 53/5.

Riaz took three wickets while Khan, Yasir Shah and Wasim each took two. The final match will be played on Sunday.

In the first of the three-match series, hailed as a test for the national team before World Cricket League Division 5, Nepal first failed to utilize the batting foundation and then witnessed strong batting from a ‘tough competitor.’

CAN XI, practically the national team, scored 152 in 46 overs after Binod Das elected to bat first. The visitor’s run-chase was halted by rainfall and their innings reduced to 29 overs.

The target was revised to 112 which they scored in 23.2 overs losing three wickets.

Pakistani openers went untroubled to 39 before Manzoor, who had scored a half-century in his only ODI against Zimbabwe, was caught behind off Binod. He scored 18 off 20 balls with a four and two sixes.

But his partner Raheel Majeed was in different mood and carried his team up to 23rd over. His 64-ball 60 with 10 fours and a six took PCB Academy six runs short of victory and earned him man of the match award.

He fell to off-spinner Sanjam Regmi. The only other man to fall was Ahmed Shehzad (14) - a wicket for left-arm Shakti Gauchan. Captain Khalid Latif (19 off 24) and Ali Asad took PCB to victory.

“The result does not matter much,” Dias commented. “What we needed was exposure and this is a good opportunity for players.”

Earlier, openers Paresh Lohani and Mahesh Chhetri gave Nepal an excellent opening partnering 38 runs in eight overs. Mahesh was then judged leg-before off Wahab Riaz and two runs later Paresh edged Sohail Khan, who has played three ODIs for Pakistan, to Sharfaraz Ahmad.

Paresh scored 23 off 30 balls and hit five boundaries. His momentum was carried by Gyanendra Malla, who looked in touch middling shots and finding gaps. Gyanendra got 45 off 51 balls with seven fours and a six pulled at square-leg. His failure in reading Imad Wasim’s balls saw his stumps castled.

Before that, Sharad Veswakar, who was making half-hearted shots, and vice-captain Paras Khadka fell on seven. Gyanendra fell on 112 as fifth wicket and remaining five went for 50 more runs with only Mehboon Alam (10) and Basant Regmi (14) reaching double-digit.

“The opening was good, but we failed to capitalize,” Nepal’s coach Roy Dias said. “They are tough competitor.”

Wasim was the most successful bowler taking three while Raiz, Khan and Yasir Shah each walked away with two wickets. Khurram Manzoor took a wicket.

The teams play second one-day game on Friday at the same ground.