Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: Bagmati Province and Nepal Police Club (NPC) won their respective matches in the PM Cup Men’s National Cricket Tournament on Tuesday.
Bagmati Province hammered Gandaki Province by 170 runs, while NPC thrashed fellow departmental side Nepal APF Club by 185 runs.
Bagmati thrash Gandaki
Batting first in Match No. 6 at the Lower Mulpani Cricket Ground on Tuesday, Bagmati scored 294 runs for the loss of eight wickets in 50 overs and restricted Gandaki to 124 in 31.5 overs.
The opening pair of Ashutosh Ghiraiya (59) and Shubh Kansakar (44) added 64 runs for the first wicket for Bagmati. Although Shivam Tiwari fell for a modest 18, Ishan Pandey scored 71 off 61 balls. Uttam Magar contributed 27 off 16, Bibek Magar made 27, while captain Sandeep Lamichhane chipped in with 26 off 17 balls.
Kamal Pariyar picked up two wickets for Gandaki, while Bipin Khatri, Ankit Neupane, Cibrin Shrestha, and Subash Bhandari claimed one each.
Gandaki stumbled in the chase of 295 as four of its batters fell for ducks. Only opener Arjun Kumal (74) and Subash Bhandari (29) reached double figures. Bipin Khatri, Krishna Poudel and Deepak Dumre managed just two runs each.
Rijan Dhakal claimed two wickets for Bagmati, while Sandeep Lamichhane and Ishan Pandey picked up two each, and Dayanand Mandal and Subash Khatri chipped in with one wicket apiece.
NPC hammer Nepal APF
Batting first in Match No. 9 at the Mulpani Cricket Ground, NPC scored 355 runs for the loss of nine wickets. In reply, Nepal APF folded for 170 in 44 overs.
NPC showcased a strong batting performance to outclass Nepal APF. Although opener Kushal Bhurtel (4) fell cheaply, Dinesh Kharel, Shankar Rana, captain Aarif Sheikh, and Dilsad Ali scored half-centuries to take NPC’s total past 350. Dinesh scored 60, Shankar made 61, and Aarif contributed 50, while Dilsad remained unbeaten on 51. Rashid Khan (44), Amit Shrestha (39), and Gulsan Jha (23) also made significant contributions for NPC.
Kamal Airee and Amar Routela picked up two wickets each for Nepal APF, while Nandan Yadav, Rohit Paudel, and Yuvaraj Khatri claimed one apiece.
Nepal APF were lacklustre in the chase as their top and middle order collapsed. No. 9 batter Nandan Yadav scored an unbeaten 44 off 55 balls, while No. 10 batter Kamal Airee hit 35 off 32 balls to reduce the margin of defeat.
Lalit Rajbansi claimed three wickets for NPC, while Karan KC, Rashid Khan, and Dinesh Kharel picked up two each, and Sagar Dhakal added one wicket.
