Kathmandu achieved the target of 131 runs with two overs to spare in the first-ever floodlit match at the Tribhuvan University Cricket International Stadium.
What you should know
Kathmandu Gorkhaz defeated defending champions Janakpur by 5 wickets in the first match of Nepal Premier League (NPL) Season 2 on Monday after performing well in both bowling and batting.
Kathmandu achieved the target of 131 runs with two overs to spare after the excellent batting of openers Ben Charlesworth and Aakash Tripathi in the first match played under floodlights at the Tribhuvan University Cricket International Stadium.
English player Charlesworth scored 46 runs off 23 balls and added 70 runs in 8 overs for the first wicket with Aakash to give Kathmandu a great start. Charlesworth hit 5 fours and 3 sixes. Aakash, a member of Janakpur's title winning team last season, scored 39 runs off 45 balls with 5 fours.
Charlesworth was caught brilliantly by Ian Nicole Lofty Eaton in his own bowling. Although Bhim Sarki was out for 3 runs off 7 balls, Aakash played with restraint and took Kathmandu's innings forward. Aakash was bowled by Sanjay Krishnamurthy.
Milind Kumar scored 19 runs in 22 balls with 1 six and John Simpson scored 13 runs in 6 balls with 1 four and 1 six. Gerhard Erasmus scored 1 and Mohammad Adil Ansari hit 1 six in 4 balls and scored 8 runs unbeaten.
Earlier, Kathmandu restricted Janakpur to 130 runs despite Asif Sheikh scoring a half-century. After Kathmandu won the toss, Janakpur, who came in to bat, could only score 130 runs for the loss of 6 wickets in the stipulated 20 overs.
Janakpur, who scored 26 runs without loss in the first 2 overs, reached 56-4 in 10 overs. American all-rounder Milind caught Lahiru Milantha behind the wicket in the fifth over and dismissed captain Anil Shah, leading Kathmandu to a great comeback.
Lahiru scored 7 runs in 12 balls while Anil could not open his account. Milind bowled Lofty Eaton for 2 runs in his next over to put Janakpur under high pressure. Kathmandu dominated the first 10 overs after American batsman Krishnamurthy was bowled by Santosh Yadav for 2 runs.
Marquee player Asif scored 54 runs in 41 balls. He hit 6 fours and 1 six. Sahab Alam got Asif caught by wicketkeeper Simpson. Lahiru Samrakoon was dismissed for 22 runs in 21 balls. He was dismissed by Karan in the fifth ball of the last over and hit 2 sixes.
Rupesh Singh, who faced the last ball, hit a four. Mayan Yadav remained unbeaten on 34 runs. He hit 2 fours and 1 six in 29 balls. Milind from Kathmandu took 3 wickets for just 15 runs in 4 overs. Janakpur, who had 79 runs in 14 overs, had added 51 runs in the last 6 overs.
