Mumbai: Dipendra Singh Airee struck a half-century to help Nepal set a 134-run target against West Indies in their third Group ‘C’ match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, Sunday.

Invited to bat first, Nepal struggled for momentum, losing wickets at regular intervals before finishing at 133-8 in 20 overs.

Seeking their first win of the tournament, Nepal faltered early as wickets fell in quick succession. However, Dipendra anchored the innings with a crucial 58 off 47 balls. He shared a vital 54-run partnership for the seventh wicket with Sompal Kami, who was playing his first match of this edition.

Airee struck three fours and three sixes before being caught by Rovman Powell off Jason Holder in the 19.2 overs. He became first Nepali batsman to score a half century for Nepal in the global showpiece.

Sompal remained unbeaten on 26 off 15 deliveries, hitting four boundaries. He also set a milestone by becoming the only Nepali cricketer to represent the country in all three T20 World Cups — 2014 (Bangladesh), 2024 (USA and West Indies), and the current edition.

Nepal accelerated in the final overs, scoring 16 and 18 runs in the 18th and 19th overs respectively. Airee smashed two sixes in the 19th over, while Sompal struck three consecutive boundaries off Holder in the 18th.

Apart from Airee and Sompal, Aasif Sheikh (11 off 10), Lokesh Bam (13 off 15) and Gulshan Jha (11 off 14) were the other Nepali batters to reach double figures.

Nepal suffered an early setback when opener Kushal Bhurtel was bowled for one by Akeal Hosein on the fifth ball of the innings. Captain Rohit Paudel followed soon after, trapped lbw by Matthew Forde for five in the 3.1 overs.

Aasif Sheikh was dismissed for 11, caught by Shimron Hetmyer off Holder’s first delivery in the fifth over, leaving Nepal reeling at 22 for 3 at the end of the powerplay.

Aarif Sheikh fell next for 11, caught by Forde off Holder’s bowling. Lokesh Bam also departed for 13, caught behind by wicketkeeper Shai Hope off Shamar Joseph, with Nepal struggling at 46 for 5 in 10.4 overs.

Gulshan Jha added 11 runs, including a six, before being bowled by Roston Chase. He had earlier shared a 27-run stand with Airee for the sixth wicket.

Holder was the pick of the bowlers for West Indies, returning impressive figures of 4 for 27 from his four overs.