Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: Yayin Kiran Rai’s magnificent unbeaten century went in vain as the UAE suffered a five-run defeat to Nepal via the DLS method in the ICC U-19 Asia Qualifier match at Lower Mulpani Cricket Ground in Kathmandu on Sunday. The match was halted due to bad light.
Batting first in a match reduced to 40 overs per side due to a wet outfield, Nepal posted 200 runs for the loss of nine wickets. In reply, the UAE was 171 for the loss of seven after 36 overs when bad light forced the umpires to call off the game. At that point, Nepal was ahead by five runs on the DLS score.
Captain Naren Bhatta top-scored for Nepal with a 75-ball 67. Dilshad Ali added 34 off 40 balls, while Sahil Patel (32), Niraj Kumar Yadav (18) and Santosh Yadav (11) chipped in with valuable contributions.
Uddish Suri picked up three wickets for the UAE. Yug Sharma and Shalom D’Souza took two wickets each, while Alisasghar Shums and Karan Dhiman claimed one apiece.
The UAE’s got off to a shaky start in the chase, with opener Ayaan Misbah dismissed for 4 in the very first over. Akshit Rai was run out for a duck in the same over. However, Yayin Kiran Rai and Mohammed Rayan steadied the innings. Captain Naren Bhatta dismissed Rayan for 35, and Ashok Dhami removed Shalom D’Souza for a duck soon after to add pressure on UAE.
Although wickets kept falling at regular intervals, Rai anchored the innings and kept UAE in contention. But the middle and lower order offered little resistance, with Prithvi Madhu (3), Madhav Manoj Nir (6) and Karan Dhiman (15*) unable to make significant contributions.
Ashok Dhami and Santosh Yadav took two wickets each for Nepal, while Abhishek Tiwari and Naren Bhatta grabbed one apiece.
Nepal will face Oman in its next match on Monday. Afghanistan and Hong Kong are the other teams competing in the qualifier.
Each team plays the others once, and the top side will qualify for the ICC U-19 World Cup to be jointly hosted by Zimbabwe and Namibia in 2026.
