Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: Tribhuvan Army Club (TAC) are at the top of the PM Cup Men’s National Cricket Tournament standings as the competition reaches its halfway stage, with all 10 teams having played five of their nine league matches.
TAC have collected nine points from five matches and remain the only unbeaten side so far. They have won four matches, while their third match against Nepal APF was washed out due to rain.
Sudurpashchim are second with eight points from five matches. The provincial team’s only defeat came in their second match against Madhesh Province.
Nepal Police Club (NPC) and Madhesh Province are joint third with seven points each after five matches. Both teams have registered three wins, suffered one defeat, and had one match abandoned.
Lumbini are fifth with five points from as many matches. They have won two and lost two, while they shared points in their first match against Karnali Province.
Bagmati are sixth on the table with four points from five matches. The provincial team has won two and lost three matches in the tournament so far.
Nepal APF, Karnali Province, and Gandaki are tied for seventh position with three points each after five matches. Koshi are at the bottom of the 10-team table and the only winless side in the tournament so far. Their only point came from an abandoned match against Madhesh.
Teams have crossed the 300-run mark only once in the tournament so far. NPC scored 355/9 in their match against Nepal APF. The next highest totals were 294/8 by Bagmati against Gandaki, and 271/3 by NPC against Bagmati.
Individual performances
Arjun Kumal has been the standout batter for Gandaki Province in the PM Cup so far, scoring 244 runs in five innings at an average of 61. His highest score of 74 came against Bagmati.
Shankar Rana is second on the list of top run scorers with 223 runs from four innings. The NPC opener has scored one century, making 116 off 128 balls against Bagmati Province.
National team regular Aarif Sheikh has 212 runs from four innings at an average of 106. The NPC captain’s highest score came against Koshi, where he hit an unbeaten 81. He also scored a half-century against Nepal APF.
Among bowlers, Santosh Yadav of Lumbini Province leads the wicket-taking chart with 14 wickets from four innings at an average of 8.1. He has registered two four-wicket hauls—against Sudurpashchim and Koshi.
Hemant Dhami, who has also claimed 14 wickets, is second with an average of 9.5. The Sudurpashchim bowler has played one more innings than Yadav and produced a magnificent spell of 6/16 against Karnali.
National team regular Sandeep Lamichhane, who has taken 12 wickets for Bagmati from five innings at an average of 17.41, is third on the list. His best bowling figures came against Karnali, where he claimed 7/40.
