Nepal qualify for 2023 Asia Cup; same group as India, Pakistan

Nepal secured their place in the 2023 Asia Cup after beating UAE in the ACC Premier Cup final on Tuesday. Thanks to Lajit Rajbanshi’s four wicket haul and Gulsan Jha’s 67 runs, Nepal beat UAE by 7 wickets with 117 balls to spare in Kirtipur.

With the win, Nepal have placed themselves in Group A of the Asia Cup alongside India and Pakistan. Group B comprises of Afghanistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

Batting first, UAE mustered just 117 in a little over 33 overs. Asif Khan emerged as the top-scorer with 46 runs from 54 balls but only four other batters entered double digits with the quartet not going beyond 13 runs.

Rajbanshi’s 4/14 was aided by Karan KC’s 2/26 and Sandeep Lamichhane’s 2/34.

In reply, Gulsan Jha was promoted to No 3 in the batting order which proved to be a masterstroke. It first negotiated Aayan Khan’s left-arm orthodox bowling and then Jha countered with shot-making.

The 17-year-old scored an unbeaten 67 runs from 84 balls to steer his side to the 118 run total in 30 overs. Bhim Sharki remained unbeaten at the other end with a slow but steady 36 runs from 72 balls.

For UAE, Rohan Mustafa was economical (1.3) and posted figures of 2/13 but the target was far too small in the end.

The Asia Cup tournament is slated to be held in September but there is no clarity over the venue. India have earlier voiced their desire to not play matches in Pakistan, which is the host country.

The top three finishes for Nepal, UAE and Oman mean they will also feature at the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup in July where they will meet ‘A’ teams of five Full Members (India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan) in the region.

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