Sudurpaschim and Biratnagar will play each other on Tuesday to qualify for the final. Sudurpaschim had won the first six matches and reached Qualifier 1.
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Sudurpaschim Royals suffered a one-sided defeat in the final match of the Nepal Premier League (NPL) league stage against Biratnagar Kings, but the situation will be different when they advance to Qualifier 1 on Tuesday, says Sudurpaschim coach Jagat Tamata.
Sudurpaschim and Biratnagar are playing against each other on Tuesday to qualify for the final. Biratnagar reached this position after defeating Sudurpaschim in the last match of the league stage. Sudurpaschim had won the first 6 matches and reached Qualifier 1.
For Biratnagar to stay in the top 2, it was not enough to win the match against Sudurpaschim, a big win was also needed. After restricting Sudurpaschim to 147 runs, Biratnagar would have been sure to reach the top two of the team only if it achieved this target within 14 overs. However, after the stormy batting of South African batting star Faf du Plessis and Australian player Sam Hazlett, Biratnagar scored 150 runs within 12 overs and set up a meeting with Sudurpaschim again.
Sudurpaschim had to pay the price for playing without their main bowler Scott Kuggeleijn. Sudurpaschim coach Tamata says that the situation will be different if they play Biratnagar again. But the qualifier could be even more difficult for Sudurpaschim. The team is in further trouble after the return of Australian batsmen Josh Brown and Chris Lynn. Tamata says that Brown's contract is only until December 6. Similarly, Lynn was injured in the sixth match against Chitwan Rhinos, in which he scored an unbeaten 75 runs off 56 balls. After that, he could not play the match against Biratnagar.
Tamata said that he will not be able to play any more matches in the tournament due to a hamstring injury. In their place, Sudurpaschim has included Indian player Sheldon Jackson, who has played in the Indian Premier League (IPL), and former Pakistani player Mukhtar Ahmed, who is currently in the US. Ahmed, who played 5 Twenty20 Internationals for Pakistan 10 years ago, is currently playing domestic cricket in the US.
'The qualifiers will be different, because this is a new game. What happened in the last match has no meaning in it. We have new players in our team, and they are also good,' said Tamata. Last season's runner-up Sudurpaschim's six-match winning streak was halted after the defeat to Biratnagar.
Since du Plessis' arrival, Biratnagar's batting has become stronger. The team showed an example of this in the match against Sudurpaschim. Martin Guptill is also back from injury. Guptill scored 22 runs in 9 balls against Sudurpaschim, including 3 sixes. Biratnagar is entering the playoffs for the first time, becoming the top 2 teams after the league stage. The winner between Sudurpaschim and Biratnagar will directly advance to the final. Kathmandu Gorkhaz and Lumbini Lions will compete in the Eliminator. The winner of this will play the loser of Qualifier 1 in Qualifier 2 for a place in the final.
