Rohit Paudel’s Nepal finished their T20 World Cup 2026 campaign on a positive note, beating Scotland by seven wickets on Tuesday, February 17, at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. This win was very special because it was Nepal’s first victory in a T20 World Cup in 4,352 days — the longest gap between wins in the tournament’s history.
Ireland are second on that list with a gap of 2,770 days. At the same ground where Nepal had earlier lost to England by just four runs in a close match, they returned with strong determination. Chasing 171 for their first win of the tournament, Nepal reached the target with four balls remaining.
Dipendra Singh Airee played a brilliant unbeaten knock of 50 runs from just 23 balls. Airee, who also holds the record for the fastest T20I half-century in just nine balls, once again played a key role in Nepal’s historic win. Speaking after the win, Airee said:
“First of all, I would like to thank the fans. They came to India and to Mumbai and supported us a lot. Our confidence also increased… I am very happy.”
“In the last World Cup, we didn’t win a single match. So, that’s why this win is very important for us. It is one of my best innings, especially while chasing,” Airee added.
How Nepal Outplayed Scotland
Scotland made 170 for 7 after being asked to bat first. Opener Michael Jones led the way with 71 runs from 45 balls. He got some help from George Munsey, who scored 27, and Brandon McMullen, who added 25. For Nepal, fast bowler Sompal Kami bowled well and took three important wickets for 25 runs. Nandan Yadav picked up two wickets.
Although Richie Berrington, Tom Bruce and Matthew Cross made some useful runs, Scotland’s middle and lower order could not score quickly in the final overs, and they ended up with a total that could have been bigger. Chasing 171, Nepal were 74 without loss after nine overs, with Bhurtel scoring 43.
Leask then took three quick wickets to make it 98/3. Aasif Sheikh made 33, and Rohit Paudel was out for 16. After that, Dipendra Singh Airee took control of the chase. He smashed an unbeaten 50, while Gulsan Jha supported him with 24 not out, as Nepal sealed a comfortable win.
Leask bowled well early, giving only 10 runs in his first three overs. However, he gave away 20 runs in his final over, including two sixes from Airee, who hit four fours and three sixes in his innings. Gulsan Jha scored the winning runs as Nepal celebrated with a lap of honour at the Wankhede Stadium.
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