Oman stun Nepal in Super Over to clinch title

By Pramod Joshi,Kathmandu, Nov. 6: Oman stunned Nepal in a thrilling Super Over in front of thousands of partisan crowd at TU Cricket Ground, Kirtipur to lift the trophy of the ICC T20 World Cup Asia Region Qualifiers on Sunday. 

Nepal won the toss and chose to bat first, scoring a big total of 184 runs while losing six wickets in 20 overs. Oman also scored 184 runs for the loss off nine wickets, resulting in a tie and a Super Over to decide the winner.

 In a thrilling Super Over encounter, Oman emerged victorious against Nepal. 

Oman scored 21 runs in the Super Over with Naseem Khusi smashing three sixes and Aquib Ilyas contributing one off Nepal's death over specialist bowler Abinash Bohara. 

In response, Nepal lost the wicket of Kushal Bhurtel and could only manage to score 10 runs in the Super Over. 

Bilal Khan's tight bowling was the highlight of the Super Over as he caught Bhurtel on the very first ball. Khan then bowled a dot ball and conceded one run each in the third and fourth balls. Kushal Malla hit two consecutive fours in the last two balls but it was not enough to secure Nepal a win. 

Oman defeated Nepal by five runs in the group stage of qualifiers and went on to remain unbeaten throughout the tournament. The winner's trophy was presented to Oman by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’. 

Both Oman and Nepal have qualified for the 2024 T20 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by the USA and West Indies, after reaching the finals of the qualifiers. This will be Nepal's first appearance in the global tournament since they last played in the 2014 T20 World Cup.

Jha, Paudel hit fifty

Nepal managed to score a big total against the visitors, thanks to the explosive half-centuries of Gulshan Jha and Captain Rohit Paudel. 

Jha was in fine form, hitting five boundaries and four sixes to score the highest 54 runs in just 25 balls. He completed his first fifty of his T20I career in just 20 balls. Captain Paudel also played a great innings, remaining unbeaten on 52 runs. He smashed five fours and two sixes off 37 balls, completing his fifth T20I half-century in 36 balls.

Jha and Paudel formed a crucial partnership of 78 runs for the fifth wicket after their team stumbled to 60-4 in the first 10 overs. Karan KC also premained not out with 20 runs in just six balls -that included one boundary and two maximums. 

At the top of the innings, Opener Kushal Bhurtel hit three boundaries and two sixes to contribute 31 runs off 22 balls. However, Bhurtel didn't make the most of an opportunity after being dropped in the 4.6 over, as Ilyas made him caught out by Mehran Khan at deep square leg in the 7.1 over. Bhurtel was adjudged best batter of the tournament.

Asif Sheikh, who led Nepal to victory against the UAE on Friday, could not perform well today with his bat. He holed out to Kashyap Prajapati at extra cover in just 2.4 overs off Bilal Khan's delivery. Additionally, sending Sundeep Jora to one down did not pay off as Omani captain Zeeshan Maqsood bowled him out from his first spell in 6.1 overs. In the 7.1 over, Ilyas dismissed Kushal Malla. Khan picked Jha as his second wicket in 16.6 overs and caught and bowled Bibek Yadav as his third wicket in 18.2 overs. 

Prajapati led Oman’s chase

Best bowler of the qualilfier, Khan conceded 26 runs from his four-over spell, while Ilyas finished with a figure of 2-22. Ilyas was named Man of the tournament. 

Kashyap Prajapati, the man of the match, led Oman's run chase. Despite losing Pratik Athavale in the 2.6th over, Prajapati played a crucial role in keeping Oman in the game with his half-century knock. He hit four maximums and three boundaries in his innings of 63 runs off 52 balls. Prajapati was caught out by Captain Paudel on the fifth ball of the 17th over, bowled by Abinash Bohara.

During the match, Prajapati and Ilyas formed a partnership for the second wicket to add 67 runs to the scoreboard. All rounder Ilyas scored 33 runs off just 19 balls, including three sixes and two boundaries. However, he got caught out by Jora at point off the bowling of pacer Gulshan Jha.

Captain Maqsood scored 26 runs off 18 balls before being caught by his counterpart Paudel as he attempted a second consecutive six off Bivek Yadav. Mohammad Nadeem remained not out with a 24-ball 9.

Thrilling last over

Nepal had to prevent Oman from scoring eight runs in the last over to win. Captain Paudel brought in Leg Spinner Sandeep Lamichhane to bowl the final over. In the first ball of the over, Lamichhane gave a single to Nadeem and in the second ball, Ayan Khan (10) was caught out by Paudel. In the third ball, Shakeel Ahmed was caught by Bohara for a duck. Fayaz Butt (1) took a run in the fourth ball, leaving Oman with six runs to win in the last two balls. Unfortunately, Nepal conceded a boundary on the fifth ball, and Oman collected one run in the last ball, resulting in a tie and a super over. While levelling the score, Oman lost Butt in the run-out in the last ball. 

Lamichhane and Karan KC took two wickets each for Nepal, while Sompal Kami, Jha, and Bohara dismissed one Omani batter each.

Before the start of the match, Captain Paudel dedicated it to the victims of the earthquake that hit Jajarkot and Rukum West on November 3. The Nepali players wore black armbands to mourn those who lost their lives in the earthquake. A minute of silence was also observed in the stadium to pay tribute to the earthquake victims. The Cricket Association of Nepal has also decided to donate half of the ticket sales from the final match to the earthquake victims.