Kathmandu: Nepal suffered a 42-run defeat to Northern Territory Strike (NTS) in their opening match of the Top End Twenty20 Series in Darwin, Australia, on Friday.

NTS posted 177–8 in the allotted 20 overs after being sent in to bat and restricted Nepal at 135–8.

Nepal faltered early on in the run chase slipping to 25–3 inside the powerplay. Middle-order batter Kushal Malla top-scored with 34 off 26 balls, including one boundary and two sixes.

All-rounder Gulsan Jha provided late resistance with a brisk 26 off just 10 deliveries, featuring two fours and two sixes. Captain Rohit Paudel (23 off 21), Dipendra Singh Airee (19 off 24), and opener Aasif Sheikh (11 off 14) were the only other batters to reach double figures.

For NTS, Matt Hammond was the standout bowler claiming 3–21 in four overs, including a maiden. Kane Richardson chipped in with two wickets.

Earlier, opener and skipper D’Arcy Short anchored the NTS innings with a composed 51 off 34 balls, laced with seven fours and a six, before falling to leg-spinner Sandeep Lamichhane as the third wicket.

Tom Andrews added an unbeaten 32 off 26 that included two fours and a six. Jordan Silk (19 off 14), Connor Carroll (18 off 17), Cadell McMahon (12 off 12), and Jake Weatherald (11 off 7) made useful contributions.

Nepal’s bowling was led by Sandeep Lamichhane, who returned figures of 3–38 from his four overs. Shahab Alam took two wickets while Rohit Paudel, Dipendra Singh Airee and Rupesh Singh claimed one apiece.

Nepal will face Bangladesh ‘A’ in their second match on Saturday. The tournament serves as Nepal’s preparation for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Asia and East Asia-Pacific Qualifier, scheduled to be held in Oman from October 8.