KATHMANDU: With the record-breaking partnership of Kushal Malla and Dipendra Singh Airee, Nepal secured an easy 79-run victory over Hong Kong and secured place in the final of the T20 triangular series.
With their third consecutive win, Nepal advanced to the finals in the triangular series, leaving just one match remaining.
Chasing Nepal’s target of 214 runs, Hong Kong could only muster 134 runs after losing 8 wickets in the allotted 20 overs.
Earlier, Nepal won the toss and chose to bat in the match played at Mulpani Cricket Ground, Kathmandu.
Nepal’s start was less than ideal. After adding 9 runs, Kushal Bhurtel was dismissed for just 2 runs as the first wicket. Sompal Kami, who batted at number three, was also dismissed after scoring just 8 runs. Following the dismissals of Aasif Sheikh (20) and captain Rohit Paudel (11), Nepal’s score stood at 55/4.
However, Kushal Malla and Dipendra Singh Airee established a record-century partnership, contributing 145 runs for the fifth wicket.
This stands as the highest partnership for the fifth wicket in T20 internationals. Previously, New Zealand’s Mark Chapman and Jimmy Neesum formed an unbeaten 121-run partnership for the fifth wicket against Pakistan.
While forming this record partnership, Malla approached a century, while Airee scored a half-century. Airee, who reached 50 runs in 30 balls, was dismissed for 57 runs on the last ball of the 19th over. He faced 34 balls and hit two sixes and six fours.
Malla fell short of a century by 8 runs. He required 8 runs for his century and had 2 balls remaining. However, he was dismissed while attempting to hit a boundary. He faced 41 balls and scored 92 runs, aided by 9 sixes and three fours.
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