Sports
Kami, Regmi shine in emphatic Nepal win
Sompal Kami gave an allround performance as Nepal crushed local side Dindigul Dragons by 163 runs in national team’s first practice match during the preparation tour of India in Chennai on Tuesday.Sompal Kami gave an allround performance as Nepal crushed local side Dindigul Dragons by 163 runs in national team’s first practice match during the preparation tour of India in Chennai on Tuesday.
Electing to bat first at the SRM University grounds, Kami lifted Nepal from a precarious 85-6 to 216-8 in 50 overs forging a match-winning century stand with Basanta Regmi for the seventh wicket. The pace bowler then returned to pick up two wickets and together with other bowlers skittled out Dragons for just 63 runs in 35.3 overs.
Nepal’s fightback with the bat was the highlight of the day as the team recovered from a stage when more than half of the team was already back in the pavilion inside 100-run mark. Openers Gyanendra Malla and Sagar Pun (15) gave a positive start adding 28 runs but they lost three wickets, including Sharad Vesawkar (one) and Paras Khadka (duck), in a space of nine runs.
Pun was first to go. Malla added another 39 runs for the fourth wicket with Aarif Sheikh (21) but three more wickets fell in space of another nine runs beginning with that of the opener. Malla made 39 off 41 with two fours and a six. Binod Bhandari was out for just one run.
Kami then resurrected the innings sharing 107 runs for the seventh wicket with Regmi, the No 8 batsman also scoring an unbeaten half century. Kami made 66 from 77 balls with four sixes and two boundaries, while Regmi scored 56 off 83 with two sixes and a four. S Arvind picked up 4-36 from 10 overs for Dragons.
Nepal struck early in the game through new national team entrant Lalit Singh Bhandari and Dragons continued to play under pressure. Mohammad Asif top scored for them with 24 off 52 with three boundaries, while Rathnam Avr (15) was their next best scorer. Sagar Pun took 3-8 from 5.3 overs, while Kami and leg-spinner Sandeep Lamichhane had two scalps apiece.
Sushil Kandel bowled a miserly nine-over spell conceding just 11 runs and picking up a wicket. Nepal are preparing for the ICC World Cricket League Championship away matches against Hong Kong scheduled for October 13 and 15. Nepal will now play three more practice matches against local teams.