KATHMANDU, DECEMBER 1
Lumbini defeated Province-II by nine wickets and advanced to the final of the Wai Wai U-19 National Cricket Tournament here at the TU Stadium today.
Batting first, Province-II were bowled out for 168 runs in 39.5 overs before Lumbini raced to 170-1 with 139 balls to spare. With their fifth victory in six matches, Lumbini accumulated 10 points and are assured of top spot in the seven-team table.
Sudurpashchim Province and Province-I have six points each, while Bagmati, Gandaki and Province-II have four points each. With one match remaining, all five teams are in contention for the race to final, while Karnali Province have been eliminated after they managed just one win in five matches.
Chasing a modest target, Lumbini openers Aakash Tripathi and Dev Khanal put up 141 runs in 22.4 overs.
Tripathi was dismissed by Santosh Karki for 57 off 62 balls that included nine boundaries. Skipper Khanal and Prajjwol Thapa completed the victory adding 29 runs for the unbroken second wicket. Skipper Khanal struck six boundaries and two sixes in his 89-ball 62, while Thapa remained unbeaten on 13 off 11 balls hitting three fours.
Earlier, Province-II opener Santosh Karki fought the lonely battle and he received little support from the other end. Karki scored 82 off 92 balls with the help of seven boundaries and five sixes.
Gulsan Jha was the next best at 23-ball 32, while Aadil Ansari remained unbeaten on 24-ball 22. Other batters could not score in double figures for Province-II.
Player-of-the-match Wasir Ahmed of Lumbini completed five wicket haul taking 5-24 and he was ably supported by Bishal Bikram KC (3-40) and Ajay Chauhan (2-43).
In another match, Sudurpashchim Province remained in contention with a six-wicket victory over Province-I at Mulpani grounds.
Batting first, Province-I were bowled out for a paltry 90 runs in 24 overs before Sudurpashchim reached 94-4 with 114 balls remaining.
Province-I skipper Ankit Subedi top scored for the team with 71-ball 61 with the help of nine boundaries, while other batters failed to reach double figure mark.
Player-of-the-match Sher Malla was the pick of the Sudurpashchim bowlers taking 4-31, while Naren Saud claimed 3-13 and Kailash Airee grabbed 2-22.
In reply, Sudurpashchim were in trouble at 23-4 in 11 overs before Basant Karki and Arjun Saud took the team home adding 71 runs for the unbroken fifth wicket.
Karki remained unbeaten on 37 off 70 balls that included one each four and six, while Saud struck four boundaries and two sixes in unbeaten 32 off 66 balls. Abhinaya Rajbanshi took 2-21 for Province-I, while Sharwan Kisku and Ankit Subedi grabbed one wicket each.
A version of this article appears in the print on December 2, 2021, of The Himalayan Times.