Bhurtel shines again as Nepal extend unbeaten run in Oman

Kathmandu: Nepal celebrated their passage into the 2026 World T20 finals with a resounding 38-run victory over hosts Oman in a clash between the two undefeated and already qualified sides in the ICC World T20 Qualifiers at the Ministry Turf 1 of Al Amerat Cricket Ground, Oman, on Wednesday.

Coming into the game after both teams had already secured their berths in next year’s World T20 finals, Nepal opted to bat first and posted 151-9, thanks to a composed half-century from opener Kushal Bhurtel.

In bowling, Gulshan Jha grabbed three wickets as Nepal restricted the home side to 113-9.

The result lifted Nepal two points clear at the top of the Super Six standings with eight points from four games, two ahead of Oman, who have played the equal matches. The victory also puts Nepal in a commanding position to claim the Qualifiers title with a perfect record if they overcome Samoa in their final game on Friday.

Bhurtel starred with a fluent 69 off 50 balls, laced with seven boundaries and a six—his second half-century of the tournament following a 66-run knock against Kuwait in Nepal’s opening match. He was dismissed in the 18th over as the sixth wicket.

He shared a 61-run opening stand with Aasif Sheikh, who contributed 24 off 20, striking two fours and a six. However, Nepal suffered a mini-collapse soon after, losing captain Rohit Paudel (1), Dipendra Singh Airee (2) and Kushal Malla (7) cheaply, reducing them to 81-4.

Adil Ansari steadied the innings with a valuable 16 off 15, which included three boundaries, and shared a 40-run partnership for the fifth wicket with Bhurtel. As in previous matches, Gulshan Jha provided a late flourish, hammering 18 off 10 deliveries with two sixes.

For Oman, Nadeem Khan was the standout bowler, claiming 4-20 from his four overs. He was ably supported by Sufyan Mehmood and Jitenkumar Ramanandi, who took two wickets apiece.

In the run chase, Oman never found their momentum and kept losing wickets at regular intervals, slumping to 41-5 in 9.3 overs. Lower middle-order batter Vinayak Shukhla top-scored with 32 off 19, including a four and three sixes, before falling to Sompal Kami, caught by Gulshan Jha.

Mohammad Nadeem chipped in with 25 off 31 before Jha had him caught by Rohit Paudel. Openers Jatinder Singh (14) and Aryan Bisht (11) were the other batters to reach double figures.

Medium pacer Gulshan Jha led Nepal’s bowling attack with 3-31, including two wickets in successive deliveries in the 14th over. Sompal Kami and Nandan Yadav also chipped in with two wickets each.