NPC, TAC and Sudurpashchim register wins in PM Cup

KATHMANDU: Defending champions Nepal Police Club (NPC) beat Lumbini Province by 87 runs in its first match of the PM Cup Men’s National Cricket Tournament on Monday.

Batting first at Extratech Oval in Rupandehi, NPC scored 249 runs for the loss of six wickets. In reply, Lumbini scored 162 runs, losing nine wickets.

Although opener Arjun Saud fell after scoring nine runs, Kushal Bhurtel and Amit Shrestha steadied NPC’s innings with an 82-run partnership. Bhurtel scored 59 off 75 balls, while Shrestha added 22 off 55 balls. After Captain Dipendra Singh Airee fell for six runs, Aarif Sheikh (56) formed important partnerships with Dilip Nath (34) and Gulsan Jha (36*) to take the score close to 250 runs.

Krishna Karki and Ajay Chauhan took three wickets each for Lumbini.

Lumbini’s top order failed in the chase of 250 runs. Although opener Mrinal Gurung scored 30 off 60 balls, other opener Manish Thapa fell for four, and No. 3 batter Aakash Tripathi was out for a duck. Captain Dev Khanal (11) also fell cheaply. Prajjwal Thapa (72) scored a fighting half-century but did not find support from the other end, as except for Salahuddin Khan (13), other Lumbini batters failed to reach double digits.

Sagar Dhakal claimed three wickets for NPC, while Lalit Rajbanshi and Dipendra Singh Airee contributed two wickets each, and Rashid Khan and Kushal Bhurtel took one wicket each.

TAC vs Bagmati

Tribhuvan Army Club (TAC) defeated Bagmati Province by a whopping 134 runs in Match No. 4 of the PM Cup at Siddhartha Cricket Stadium, Bhairahawa.

Batting first, TAC scored 262 runs for the loss of eight wickets in the allotted 50 overs, helped by Santosh Karki’s half-century. In reply, Bagmati folded for a paltry 128 runs in 27 overs.

Trit Raj Das and Santosh Karki added 96 runs for the first wicket for the departmental side. Trit Raj scored 36 runs, while Karki scored 76 off 98 balls. Although Bhim Sarki and Basir Ahamad fell for 7 and 2, respectively, Captain Binod Bhandari steered the innings, scoring 47 off 50 balls. Bibek Yadav scored 30 off 33 balls before Kushal Malla scored a quick-fire 26 from just 12 balls.

Rijan Dhakal, Pratish GC, and Ishan Pandey took two wickets each for Bagmati, while Sonu Devkota contributed with one wicket.

Chasing 262, Bagmati lost its first wicket with just six runs on the board as Shubh Kansakar fell after scoring three runs. The other opener Ashutosh Ghiraiya fell for 10, while Captain Pritu Baskota returned to the pavilion after scoring three. Except for Ishan Pandey’s 19 and a magnificent 51 off 50 balls by Bibek Magar, other Bagmati batters failed to reach double digits.

Shahab Alam claimed four wickets, while Aakash Chand secured three to bundle out Bagmati cheaply. Sompal Kami, Naren Saud, and Basir Ahamad took one wicket each.

Sudurpashchim vs Gandaki

Sudurpashchim defeated Gandaki by six wickets to record its first win in Match No. 6 of the PM Cup.

Batting first at the Deukhuri International Cricket Stadium in Lamahi, Gandaki Province scored 220 runs for the loss of eight wickets. In reply, Sudurpashchim scored 222 runs for the loss of four wickets with seven overs to spare. Kiran Thagunna scored a magnificent century for Sudurpashchim, scoring 121 off just 101 balls.

Although Gandaki lost opener Sameer Kandel (2) with just eight runs on the board, Arjun Kumal (57) and Deepak Dumre (60) struck half-centuries to steer Gandaki’s innings. However, they failed to post a fighting total as Vansh Chhetri (18), Dinesh Budha Magar (15), and Sudip Aryal (23) all got starts but failed to convert them into big scores. Amrit Gurung and Captain Bipin Khatri contributed 10 each.

Sher Malla took three wickets, while Narayan Joshi claimed two, and Hemant Dhami, Milan Bohara, and Arjun BK contributed one wicket each for Sudurpashchim.

Although Sudurpashchim lost openers Tek Rawat (5) and Khadak Bohora (19), and No. 3 batsman Nischal Kshetri (19) cheaply, Kiran played a magnificent knock to script an easy victory. He clubbed six towering sixes and nine fours to remain not out at 121. He found support from Captain Narayan Joshi, who scored 38 off 47 balls.

Bipin Khatri, Amrit Gurung, Kamal Pariyar, and Arjun Kumal took one wicket each for Gandaki.

Sudurpashchim conceded a 79-run defeat to Karnali in its first match on Sunday.

Tuesday’s Matches:

• Koshi vs Madhesh
• Gandaki vs Karnali