Kathmandu Gorkhas delivered a commanding performance, defeating Chitwan Rhinos by 53 runs in the Nepal Premier League on Friday at the TU International Cricket Ground. This comprehensive victory was a clear indication of Gorkhas’ skillful performance in every department and at this mid-tournament stage, they have already earmarked themselves as serious title contenders.
Chasing a relatively easy target of 143 runs, Chitwan’s batting order faced a disaster and was wiped out for only 89 runs in just 17.1 overs. Their batsmen from the very first ball had a tough time and the weaker bowlers could not even get along with the Gorkhas’ tight bowling. The margin of 53 runs was a clear indication of Chitwan’s total incapability to deal with the pressure, since the wickets kept falling one after the other during their unfortunate chase and they were left with a score which was far from even being competitive.
Kathmandu Gorkhas secured a comfortable 53-run victory
The Kathmandu Gorkhas team asserted itself with a big 53-run win over the Chitwan Rhinos in the Nepal Premier League Season 2 match on Friday which took place at the TU International Cricket Ground. Chitwan, who were batting second, succumbed to a severe collapse while attempting to chase down a target of only 143 runs and they were all out for a mere 89 runs in 17.1 overs. This was their second loss of the season and it also cut off the winning streak they were having after beating the Biratnagar Bolts, Karnali Yaks, and Lumbini Lions.
Kathmandu now had a total of three tournament wins, as they were able to recover from their previous losses to Biratnagar Bolts and Sudurpaschim Royals. Their previous wins were already over Lumbini Lions and Janakpur Royals which showed their consistency at least during the middle phase of the competition.
Chitwan’s batting went into disarray from the very first ball. Deepak Bohora got out for zero in the very first over and then David Malan got out in the third over. The fifth over dismissal of Saif Zaib only added to their woes. Dev Khanal was the highest scorer with 21 runs from 18 balls when he got out, and after him, Ravi Bopara who was the leading scorer with three back-to-back fifties, made only 21 runs. Sohail Tanvir was the only other batsman who could get past 18 runs but none of the other batsmen could even reach 10 runs.
The entire Kathmandu bowling unit was totally destructive and very effective in their bowling. Rashid Khan took three key wickets, among them was Bopara’s who has been the top scorer of the inning. Karan KC got rid of both Bohora and Tanvir while Milind Kumar took care of Malan and Zaib. Saib Alam got Dev Khanal and Kushal Malla out, with Santosh Yadav being the last one to bowl out the entire Chitwan innings.
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