Kathmandu, Nov 12: Nepal has clinched the fifth match held today under the ongoing ICC U-19 Women’s T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier in The Sevens Stadium in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). In the match that concluded a while ago, Nepal secured a dominant 165-run victory over Kuwait.
Captain Puja Mahato as a batter and bowler gave her outstanding performance in the match. Towards batting, she played beyond a century and as a bowler, she alone took five wickets, creating a history. She is the first cricketer from Nepal to hit beyond a century and take five wickets in a single match.
Winning the toss, Nepal chose to bat first and made 213 runs in 20 overs at the loss of two wickets. In reply, chasing the target of 214 runs for a win, Kuwait was restricted to 48 in 13 overs at the loss of all wickets. Kuwait’s captain, Zeefa Jilani, top-scored with 36, hitting seven boundaries in 42 balls. No other batter from Kuwait was able to reach double digits. Nepal gave seven extra runs to Kuwait.
Towards the bowling side, Mahato took five wickets followed by two each from Rachana Kumari Chaudhary and Seema KC. Mahato hit 130 runs with 17 boundaries in 69 balls in the first inning. Soni Pakhrin scored 43 including two fours in 33 balls, Sabitri Dhami 11, and Sana Praveen contributed six to the team.
Kuwait gave 23 extra runs to Nepal. Jilani and Raelyn Maria D’Souza took one wicket each. Nepal will be meeting the UAE on Wednesday for the next match. A total of four nations: the UAE, Nepal, Kuwait, and Thailand are competing in the tournament and the top team from this competition will be qualified to play in the World Cup to be held in Malaysia in 2025.
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