Sudurpaschim Royals has defeated Karnali Yaks by 6 wickets in the 28th match of the Nepal Premier League (NPL) held in Kirtipur.
Despite loss to Sudurpaschim in the final league stage match, Karnali has entered the playoff based on net run rate. On the other hand, with Karnali's defeat, Kathmandu Gurkhas has crashed out of the league stage due to its poor run rate.
Had Sudurpaschim reached the target in 12.2 overs, Kathmandu could have reached the playoff. However, Sudurpaschim's failure to meet the target in 12.2 overs paved the way for Karnali to enter into the playoff.
With this, playoff playing teams -- Sudurpaschim and Janakpur Bolts, Karnali and Chitwan -- have been finalized. Karnali Yaks will now take on Chitwan Rhinos in an eliminator.
Chasing the 102-run target set by Karnali, Sudurpaschim reached it in 15.2 overs, losing 4 wickets. Ishan Pandey and captain Dipendra Singh Airee made 38 runs each followed by Saif Zaib with 11 runs. The other batsmen could not score double-digit runs.
Earlier, invited to bat first after losing the toss at TU Cricket Ground in Kirtipur on Monday, Karnali notched up 101 runs losing all wickets in the allotted 20 overs. Zeeshan Maqsood topped the score with 30 runs followed by William Bosisto with 16 runs while Babar Hayat scored 13 runs. The other batsmen could not achieve significant runs.
To exert pressure on Karnali, Harmeet Singh grabbed the highest 3 wickets while Scott Kuggeleijn and Dipendra Singh Airee claimed 2 wickets each.
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