KATHMANDU: The Nepal ‘A’ cricket team, currently on a tour of Australia, suffered a 2-wicket defeat against New Zealand ‘A’ in a friendly one-day match on Sunday. Chasing a target of 212 runs set by Nepal, New Zealand ‘A’ reached the total with one ball to spare, losing 8 wickets in the process.
New Zealand opener Rhys Mariu played a match-winning century, scoring 137 runs off 134 balls. For Nepal, bowlers Rijan Dhakal, Shahab Alam, and Yuvraj Khatri each claimed 2 wickets, while Bipin Khatri and Pawan Sarraf took 1 wicket apiece.
Earlier, after winning the toss and choosing to bat first, Nepal ‘A’ were bowled out for 211 runs in 50 overs. Pawan Sarraf top-scored for the team with 61 runs, followed by Lokesh Bam with 47, Anil Sah with 24, and Mayan Yadav with 20 runs.
New Zealand’s bowling attack was led by Matt Fisher, who took 4 wickets. Christian Clark and Adithya Ashok claimed 2 wickets each, while Jack Gibson and Mohammad Abbas picked up 1 wicket each. The Nepali team is in Australia to participate in the Top End T20 series.
