KATHMANDU: Arif Sheikh smashed a brilliant half-century to steer Nepal to a five-wicket win against the Netherlands in Dundee, Scotland, on Wednesday night.
Chasing 226, Nepal reached the target in 47.1 overs at Forthill Cricket Ground. Arif anchored the innings, scoring a match-winning 78 off 99 balls, with seven boundaries and two maximums—his career-best knock.
Despite a cautious start with several dot balls, he settled in and built a crucial innings. “If I can see off 30 to 40 balls, I believe we can chase down any target,” Sheikh said. “It was tricky early on, but once I got my eye in, I was confident we could win from any position,” he told reporters after the match.
At 68/3, Arif, alongside skipper Rohit Paudel (23 off 39), stitched a 55-run stand for the fourth wicket. After Paudel fell in the 30th over, vice-captain Deependra Singh Airee provided solid support, remaining unbeaten on 38 off 61 balls. He played the perfect second fiddle to Sheikh during their vital 89-run partnership for the fifth wicket, keeping Nepal on course.
Sheikh departed in the 46th over with just 14 runs needed for victory. Airee and Gulshan Jha (11 off 4) took care of the rest, with Gulshan finishing things off in style—smacking a six to seal the win. Opener Kushal Bhurtel chipped in with 25 off 42 balls, while Asif Sheikh (19 off 22) and Bhim Sharki (11 off 26) were the other double-digit scorers for the Rhinos.
For the Netherlands, Michael Levitt bagged two wickets, while Vivian Kingma and Paul van Meekeren picked up one apiece.
Earlier, Nepal’s disciplined bowling and sharp fielding kept the Dutch batters in check. The Netherlands, opting to bat first, were skittled for 225 in 49.1 overs. Pacer Sompal Kami spearheaded the attack, picking up three wickets. Karan KC, Sandeep Lamichhane, and Lalit Rajbanshi chipped in with two scalps each.
The Dutch innings started poorly, losing openers Levitt (1) to Sompal and Max O’Dowd (4) to Karan within the first five overs. Scott Edwards (46 off 71) and Vikramjit Singh (38 off 56) steadied things with a 72-run stand for the third wicket.
Nepal’s leg-spinner Sandeep Lamichhane broke the partnership, forcing Vikramjit to edge one to Aarif in the 22nd over. Soon after, Edwards followed, dismissed by Lalit Rajbanshi in the first ball of the 27th over.
Noah Croes, the Dutch top-scorer with 48 off 55 balls, joined Roelof van der Merwe (21) to add another crucial 55-run partnership for the eighth wicket. Sompal eventually ended Croes’ resistance, cleaning him up in the 48th over.
Earlier, Zach Lion-Cachet (27 off 34) and Teja Nidamanuru (13) contributed a 33-run stand for the fifth wicket. However, Lalit ensured the partnership didn’t last, dismissing Zach in the 33rd over with Karan taking the catch.
Sheikh credited Nepal’s bowlers for executing their plans effectively. “Our strategy was to keep them under 250, which we felt would make the chase manageable. We restricted them to 225, and a couple of good partnerships were always going to be enough. We achieved that, and it made the win possible,” he explained.
This victory marks Nepal’s second consecutive win in their fourth round of League 2 Tri-angular series, following triumph over Scotland. It’s the first time Nepal has registered back-to-back wins in this cycle.
“Every win here is as important as a final,” said Arif, reflecting on the victories against two strong opponents. “Beating one of the best associate teams is a huge achievement. At this stage of League 2, every match feels like a final for us.”
Nepal currently sits seventh in the League 2 standings with 10 points from 14 matches. The Netherlands remain second with 26 points from 21 games. With this momentum, Nepal will look to extend their winning streak in the upcoming clash against hosts Scotland on June 8.
