Kathmandu: Nepal secured a commanding five-wicket victory over Japan on Friday, finishing at the top of Group ‘B’ in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Asia and East Asia Pacific Qualifiers. The match was held at Turf 1 of the Al Amerat Cricket Ground in Oman.

After opting to bowl first, Nepal restricted Japan to a modest total of 131-8 in the allotted 20 overs. In response, Nepal chased down the target scoring 132-5 in 18 overs to seal the win. This result followed their 58-run victory over Kuwait in their opening match on Wednesday. Japan had previously defeated Kuwait by five wickets on Thursday.

Nepal’s Run Chase

Nepal’s opener Aasif Sheikh, was the standout performer with the bat making a brisk 38 from 25 balls which included one boundary and four sixes. However, the match’s highlight was an unbeaten 42-run partnership for the sixth wicket between Gulshan Jha and Dipendra Singh Airee.

Gulshan played a quickfire knock of 28 from 20 balls which included a boundary and two sixes while Airee chipped in with a run-a-ball 14. Opener Kushal Bhurtel also contributed 21 from 21 balls, including three boundaries.

Both openers, Bhurtel and Aasif fell to Japan’s Shoma Slater. Bhurtel was caught by Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming, and Sheikh by Ibrahim Takahashi. Captain Rohit Paudel, trapped leg before by Sabaorish Ravichandran, contributed 18 from 19 balls.

Slater was the standout bowler for Japan, finishing with 2-22 in his four overs.

Kadowaki-Fleming’s Half-Century for Japan

Earlier, Japan’s captain and opener Kendel Kadowaki-Fleming led from the front smashing 60 off 46 balls with five boundaries and three sixes. Kadowaki-Fleming forged an impressive 86-run partnership for the second wicket with Esam Rahman, who made 31 from 25 balls.

However, after Rahman’s dismissal at 97-2 in the 12.5th over, Japan’s innings took a dramatic turn. They lost four wickets for just 11 runs, slumping to 109-6. Rahman was caught by Sundeep Jora off medium pacer Sompal Kami while Kadowaki-Fleming fell to Gulshan Jha, caught by Rohit Paudel.

Benjamin Ito-Devis was the third Japanese batter to reach double figures, scoring 17 from 12 balls before being dismissed by Sandeep Lamichhane, caught by Nandan Yadav on the penultimate delivery of the innings.

Gulshan Jha and Sandeep Lamichhane were the pick of Nepal’s bowlers, both taking two wickets each. Jha delivered an impressive spell, claiming 2/20 from his four overs, which included a maiden, while Lamichhane conceded just 24 runs in his full quota.

Both Japan and Nepal had already secured spots in the Super Six after their victories over Kuwait in the opening games. The two teams will not compete in the Super Six round and the results from the group stage will carry over to the next round. The top three teams from the Qualifiers will earn spots in next year’s World T20 finals, which will be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka.