In the second Nepal Premier League (NPL), last season’s runners-up, Sudurpashchim Royals, made a winning start with an exciting victory. Sudurpaschim Royals defeated Kathmandu Gorkhas by 29 runs today. Harmit Singh delivered a powerful performance in Sudurpaschim Royals’s win.
Chasing a target of 148 runs, Kathmandu Gorkhas were bowled out for 118 in 16.5 overs. Kathmandu Gorkhas lost their first wicket in the fifth ball of the second over, when opener Ben Charlesworth was dismissed for 8 runs off Hemant Dhami. Kathmandu had scored 18 runs when the first wicket fell.
Coming in at one-down, Bhim Sharki was caught by Arif Sheikh off Hemant for 12 runs. Soon after, Santosh Yadav was run out for 1. With three wickets down, Kathmandu were at 39 runs. They scored 50 runs in the first powerplay.
Aakash Tripathi and Jon Simpson were at the crease. After 10 overs, Kathmandu were at 87, needing 61 runs off 60 balls to win. After the duo added 49 runs for the fourth wicket, Jon was bowled by Ishan Pandey for 24 in the 11th over. This marked a strong comeback from Sudurpashchim.
In the 12th over, Harmit took two wickets. Aakash, who had made 34 runs off 30 balls with one four and two sixes, was caught by Jas Brown. On the very next ball, Harmit dismissed big-hitter Aadil for a golden duck. At the end of 12 overs, Kathmandu Gorkhas were 96 for 6. Milind Kumar was dismissed by Naren Saud for 11, leaving Kathmandu Gorkhas needing 42 runs from 32 balls with three wickets in hand — turning the game tense.
Next, Rasid Khan was dismissed for 6 by Scott Kuggeleijn, leaving Kathmandu Gorkhas needing 38 runs from 28 balls. Kathmandu Gorkhas were now under pressure. Captain Karan KC was also sent back by Scott for just 1 run. At 112 runs, Kathmandu Gorkhas lost their ninth wicket, giving Sudurpashchim Royals a firm grip on the match.
Sunny Patel, who had made 10 runs, was caught by captain Dipendra Singh Airee off Avinash Bohara, sealing the victory for Sudurpashchim Royals. In bowling, Scott, Hemant, and Harmit took two wickets each, while Avinash, Naren, and Ishan picked up one apiece.
Earlier, after Kathmandu Gorkhas captain Karan won the toss and chose to bowl, Sudurpashchim Royals scored 147 runs in 20 overs, losing all 10 wickets.
Karan gave Kathmandu Gorkhas a dream start with the ball. On just the second delivery, he trapped Jas Brown lbw for a duck. On the last ball of the same over, he dismissed the other opener, Binod Bhandari, caught by Bhim, also for a duck. Karan gave away only one run and dismissed both openers in the first over.
In the second over, Sahab Alam conceded only one run. With two early wickets gone, expectations rose from Chris Lynn. However, he too was dismissed by Karan for just 2 runs, caught by Milind Kumar. At that moment, Sudurpashchim Royals were struggling at 4 runs for 3 wickets.
On the last ball of the sixth over, Milind dismissed Ishan Pandey for 11. Kathmandu Gorkhas’s strong start limited Sudur to just 27 runs in the first powerplay, with four wickets already down. The fifth wicket fell when Arif Sheikh was dismissed lbw by Rashid Khan for 25. At 9.4 overs, Sudurpashchim Royals were at 52 for 5. Then, on the last ball of the 10th over, Dipendra was dropped on 12 by Sahab off Rashid’s bowling. In the first ball of the 14th over, Aadil Alam dropped Naren’s catch—an admirable attempt. But on the next ball, Naren was caught by Bhim off Milind. Sudur were at 72 for 6.
By the end of the 15th over, Sudurpaschim Royals were at 80, still struggling, but they exploded with runs in the 16th and 17th overs.
Harmit played a blistering knock. Sudur scored 21 runs in the 16th over, with Harmit hitting three sixes. Karan returned to bowl the 17th over; although he had previously taken 3 wickets for just 2 runs in 2 overs, he conceded 24 runs this over. Harmit struck one four and three consecutive sixes. He was also dropped on 47 when Bhim missed a catch.
Dipendra and Harmit shared a 61-run partnership for the seventh wicket. Dipendra was dismissed for 39 by Rashid Khan, scoring three fours and one six off 30 balls. Soon after, Scott Kuggeleijn was bowled by Sunny for 1.
Having lifted the innings with his explosive batting, Harmit completed a half-century off just 19 balls, hitting two fours and six sixes. He was eventually caught by Sahab off Sunny Patel for 53.
For Kathmandu Gorkhas, Karan took the highest number of wickets — 4 in 4 overs, giving away 30 runs. Milind, Sunny, and Rashid took two wickets each.
Kathmandu Gorkhas have collected 2 points from 2 matches. Sudurpashchim Royals earned 2 points from their first match. Tomorrow, Lumbini Lions and Chitwan Rhinos will face each other in NPL 2025