Nepal set a target of 140 runs against Hong Kong in the contention for third place in the ongoing ACC Men’s T20 Premier Cup in Al Amerat, Oman on Saturday.

Despite a mediocre batting show, the Rhinos, who chose to bat first, managed to accumulate a decent total of 139 runs in the stipulated 20 overs, thanks to a last-minute aggressive play by Dipendra Singh Airee.

Nepal stumbled in the beginning, losing opener Kushal Bhurtel for a duck in the second delivery of the innings. Sompal Kami was next to go being caught by Nizakat Khan for a 7-ball 12 in 2.3 overs.

Bhurtel’s opening partner Aasif Sheikh also failed with the bat, being dismissed for a cheap 5 runs off 11 balls.

Captain Rohit Paudel smashed two boundaries to put 21 runs on the scoreboard while Sundeep Jora also contributed a 23-knock 22.

Nepal were down 98-8 after Karan KC was caught leg before for a meagre 3 runs in 16.2 overs. Airee then stepped up for Nepal as he muscled four hits to the fences and three maximums helping the Rhinos escalate to the decent total.

The all-rounder put an unbeaten 44 runs on the scoreboard facing 29 deliveries.

Kushal Malla (13), Gulsan Jha (6) and Lalit Rajbanshi (3) were other batters who contributed for Nepal.

For Hong Kong, Ayush Shukla claimed three Nepali scalps while Ateeq Iqbal, Yasim Murtaza, and Ehsan Khan also picked a wicket apiece.

Nepal’s hopes to qualify for their second Asia Cup ended after they lost to the United Arab Emirates by six wickets in the semi-finals of the T20 series on Friday.

The UAE will face Oman in a high-stake final on Sunday. The winners of the tournament will secure their ticket to the 2025 T20 Asia Cup.

The third-placed team will qualify for the ACC Emerging Cup along with the two finalists.