Nepal lost to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the first match of the T20 International series that began between the two countries in Kirtipur today.
In the day-night match held at the Tribhuvan University Cricket Ground in Kirtipur, the UAE was given a victory target of 78 runs in 10 overs based on the 'DL method' after rain interrupted the match. In reply, the visitors achieved the target in 8.5 overs, losing 4 wickets.
For UAE, captain Mohammad Wasim scored 33 runs in 15 balls. Similarly, Alishan Sharfu scored 18 runs and Akshadeep Nath scored an unbeaten 17 runs. For the bowling side, Sandeep Lamichhane took 3 wickets for 8 runs in 2 overs while Kushal Malla took one wicket.
Earlier, Nepal, who won the toss and elected to bat first, had scored 122 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in 18.5 overs, when rain interrupted the match. Captain Dipendra Singh Airi scored an unbeaten 32 runs in 35 balls while Kushal Malla contributed 17 runs, Kushal Bhurtel 16 runs and Bashir Ahmed 14 runs. For the UAE, Mohammad Zuhaib took 3 wickets while Junaid Siddiqui took 2 wickets.
With this, the UAE has taken a 1-0 lead in the series. The second match will be played tomorrow.
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