Kamal Ghorui
Kushal Bhurtel’s blazing start and Dipendra Singh Airee’s unbeaten half-century powered Nepal to a morale-boosting seven-wicket victory over Scotland, ending a 12-year-long T20 World Cup winless streak in a dead-rubber Group C clash at the Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday. Nepal, who had last tasted World Cup success in 2014 against Afghanistan and the Netherlands, chased down Scotland’s 171 with 19.2 overs to spare. Airee’s rapid 50 off 23 balls, featuring three sixes and four fours, anchored the chase, while Bhurtel’s aggressive 43 laid the platform. Gulsan Jha contributed an unbeaten 24, including two towering sixes, sharing an unbroken 73-run partnership for the fourth wicket that sealed the result.
Bhurtel had a narrow escape early on when Brad Currie spilled a return catch, and the opener capitalised immediately with a massive six over long-on. Nepal’s innings started cautiously under pressure, but Aasif Sheikh (33) and Bhurtel brought momentum with multiple boundaries, including sixes over fine leg and off Mark Watt. Scottish spinners later tightened the screws, claiming Bhurtel, Aasif, and skipper Rohit Paudel (16), but Airee’s late assault and Jha’s finishing touches ensured a win with four balls remaining. Earlier, Michael Jones carried Scotland to a competitive 170/7 with a 71-run blitz, featuring eight fours and three sixes. His 80-run opening stand with George Munsey was the backbone of the innings, though the rest of the batters failed to convert starts. Munsey managed 27 off 29 balls, falling frustrated to Sundeep Jora’s diving catch at long-on. Scotland suffered further setbacks with fielding lapses, including a dropped skier by Jora off McMullen, before Sompal Kami (3/25) cleaned up Jones with a brilliant one-handed return catch, wrapping up Scotland’s innings. In the end, Nepal signed off their World Cup campaign on a high note, delighting over 19,000 fans at the Wankhede with a dominant performance.
