Mumbai, Feb 15 (IANS) Dipendra Singh Airee’s gritty half-century helped Nepal recover from a disastrous start to post 133/8 against West Indies in their Group C encounter of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday.
Asked to bat on a damp surface, Nepal were immediately put under pressure by the West Indies new-ball attack. Akeal Hosein struck in the opening over, getting one to skid through and bowl Kushal Bhurtel. The early breakthrough set the tone as Matthew Forde and Hosein maintained tight lines, offering little width and extracting grip off the pitch.
Aasif Sheikh briefly counterattacked with a couple of boundaries but fell to Jason Holder, who claimed a wicket with his first delivery, a loose ball down the pads that was hit straight to fine leg. Forde then trapped skipper Rohit Paudel lbw, with the decision upheld on review, before Holder struck again to remove Aarif Sheikh, whose leading edge ballooned to mid-wicket. Nepal crawled to 22/3 at the end of the powerplay, the lowest six-over total of the tournament.
With the top order dismantled, Airee was tasked with rebuilding. He began cautiously, struggling to find timing as the Windies’ bowlers varied their pace cleverly. Lokesh Bam attempted to inject momentum but edged Shamar Joseph behind after a streaky boundary, leaving Nepal at 46/5 in the 11th over.
Airee finally shifted gears against the spinners. He advanced down the track to Gudakesh Motie to loft the first six of the innings over long-off, signalling Nepal’s intent to fight back. Gulsan Jha supported with a towering slog sweep off Hosein but perished attempting another big hit, bowled by Roston Chase as he looked to accelerate.
At 68/5 after 14 overs, Nepal appeared headed for a modest total. However, the tide turned dramatically in the closing stages. Airee found a reliable partner in Sompal Kami, who played with freedom and authority. Sompal took on Holder in the 17th over, striking three boundaries to push Nepal past the 100-run mark and energise the dugout.
Airee brought up a determined half-century with an audacious upper cut for six off Shamar Joseph, raising his bat to a standing ovation. The 18th over yielded 18 runs as Airee struck two sixes, including a powerful slog over mid-wicket, while Sompal rotated strike intelligently.
The final over provided high drama. Holder dismissed Airee for a valiant 58 off 47 balls, ending a crucial knock that featured three fours and three sixes. Sompal and Karan KC scrambled valuable runs before Holder struck again to finish with impressive figures of 4-27.
Brief Scores: Nepal 133/8 in 20 overs (Dipendra Singh Airee 58, Sompal Kami 26*; Jason Holder 4-27, Matthew Forde 1-10) against West Indies
–IANS
vi/bc
