'Nepal target Super Eight at T20 World Cup'

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, Feb. 6: Nepal will play with the aim of reaching the Super Eight stage of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, skipper Rohit Paudel said on Thursday.

Speaking at a press conference at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium during the captains’ meet, Paudel declared his side was determined to break new ground after falling short in the group stage of the previous edition. “Our target is the Super Eight. In the past we struggled to get through the group stage,” he said.

Nepal failed to progress beyond the group stage in both the 2014 and 2024 tournaments. This time, they are drawn in Group C alongside England, the West Indies, Scotland and Italy.

This will be Nepal’s third appearance at the T20 World Cup. Paudel will lead the team at successive global events, having captained them in 2024.

Paudel added that Nepal’s ambition was to defeat a Test‑playing nation at the tournament, insisting such a victory would pave the way to the Super Eight. “We have defeated Test nations earlier, and we hope to repeat the same in this World Cup. The preparation has been the best so far. Everyone is excited and we are confident of reaching the Super Eight,” he said.

Nepal beat Canada

Meanwhile, Nepal produced strong performances in their official warm‑up matches. They recorded a comprehensive six‑wicket win over Canada in their final warm‑up before beginning their World Cup campaign on 8 February against England. Earlier, the Rhinos overcame the UAE by seven wickets in their first warm‑up fixture on Tuesday.

Chasing a testing target of 162 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, Nepal reached the mark in 18 overs for the loss of four wickets, with 12 balls to spare.

Canada had won the toss and opted to bat first, posting 161 for six in their allotted 20 overs. Navneet Dhaliwal top‑scored with 41, while Shreyas Movva remained unbeaten on 38. Kanwarpal Tathgur added 25, Jaskaran Singh 21 and Nicholas Kirton 10.

For Nepal, Sandeep Lamichhane and Kushal Bhurtel claimed two wickets apiece, with Sompal Kami and Nandan Yadav taking one each.

In pursuit of 162, opener Aasif Sheikh struck six fours and three sixes in a fluent 29‑ball half‑century, finishing on 58. Sundeep Jora contributed 44, while Gulshan Jha remained unbeaten on 31.

Opener Kushal Malla was dismissed for 12, and Sheikh retired hurt in the 11th over, bringing Jha to the crease. Captain Dipendra Singh Airee was not out on nine, with Lokesh Bam adding five.

As part of their World Cup preparations, Nepal also played two practice matches against MCA President’s XI in Mumbai, following a series against Sri Lanka ‘A’ in Colombo.