Nepal has completed their quest for achieving One Day International status in what was a dramatic day at the World Cup Qualifiers in Zimbabwe.
After defeating Papua New Guinea in their World Cup Qualifying playoff in Harare by six wickets, Nepal had to wait for the completion of the Netherlands/Hong Kong match in Kwekwe for their fate to be decided: a Dutch win would confirm their ODI Status, with a Hong Kong victory meaning Nepal would have to beat them in a 7th place playoff to achieve the same result.
Fortuitously for Nepal, Hong Kong fell 44 runs short of the Netherlands’ 174, handing Nepal ODI status for the first time and surely launching parties on nearly every street corner.
This curious scenario was a result of an ICC ruling pre-tournament that meant that the three highest associate members excluding the Netherlands at the World Cup Qualifier would be given ODI status through to 2022. The Netherlands, after winning the World Cricket League in December last year, were also awarded the same status, hence their exemption in the ruling.
With West Indies, Zimbabwe, Ireland, and Afghanistan all full members, Scotland and the United Arab Emirates kept their ODI status by successfully qualifying for the Super Six stage of the tournament. This meant that there was one spot up for grabs for the highest finisher between Nepal, Hong Kong, and Papua New Guinea. With the Netherlands and Nepal progressing to the 7th place playoff match, it was Nepal who took the last spot.
Winning the toss and electing to field, captain Paras Khadka opted to chase a target set by Papua New Guinea, going back to their tactic of batting second which brought success at the World Cricket League Division 2 tournament just a few weeks ago.
Dipping into their experiences of the WCL2 tournament in Namibia brought immediate dividends. Sompal Kami trapped PNG captain Assad Vala LBW in the third over, with Karan KC collecting the scalp of the dangerous Tony Ura at the other end, caught behind soon after by Anil Sah.
After consistent scores down the order, Chad Soper was promoted to three and held the fort with a decent effect, limiting the damage made by the quick-bowling pair. With Sese Bau joining Soper, the pair ticked the score over fifty, only for Soper to be struck in front and given LBW by Sandeep Lamichanne in the thirteenth over. This triggered a collapse led by the leg-spinning prodigy, who has been oozing with confidence and swagger since his IPL windfall in January. Ripping through PNG’s batting lineup, the 17-year-old bagged the wickets of Bau, Mahuru Dai and Kiplin Doriga on the way to figures of 4/29. Lamichhane also proved to be a handful in the field, with numerous direct hits, stifling any chance of PNG adding cheap extras to their total.
Keeping the foot to the throat, off-spinning all-rounder Dipendra Singh Airee cleaned up the tail with a bowling effort arguably overshadowing Lamichanne’s. Finishing with figures of 4/14, PNG slumped to 114 all out, four wickets for just eight runs.
Despite losing Gyanendra Malla and Anil Sah early to Alei Nao and Norman Vanua respectively in the chase, Khadka was joined by Dipendra Singh Airee in an attempt to quash any nervy doubts of a batting stumble. Khadka then fell on 20 trying to counter, picking out Tony Ura.
With Nepal’s cricketing future riding on this match, it was rather fitting that the batting responsibility rested on the shoulders of Airee and Aarif Sheikh. With a combined age of 38, the pair went at around five-an-over, knocking down a lion’s share of the target together. As the pair reached their fifty-run partnership, the PNG fielders looked bereft of ideas, unable to stop the onslaught. Sheikh was eventually brought undone by Norman Vanua, though it was the only consolation for PNG. The Nepalis raced to the finish line, with Airee bringing up the victory and a half-century with a six.
Nepal’s players and staff waited with bated breath, scrolling through updates to check the latest score in Kwekwe, a two-hour drive from their ground in Harare. As for the 30 million back home, online scorecards and a few men on the ground providing updates on social media were the only remedies, as the nerves continued to build. As Hong Kong wickets continued to tumble, their key batsman Babar Hayat looked the only threat of ruining the dream story for the Nepalis. When he departed to an edge behind off the bowling of Peter Borren, it was all but over. Roelof van der Merwe finished the job for the Dutch, just as Airee did for Nepal, sparking social media frenzy as thousands of Nepal fans congratulated their heroes.
Nepal’s victory also ensures that they avoided relegation to World Cricket League Division Two. Papua New Guinea and Hong Kong are the teams instead set for the drop.
Daniel Beswick.
Twitter: @DGBeswick1
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