PNG defeats Nepal by 85 runs; lifts title of Hong Kong Men’s T20 Series

KATHMANDU: Nepal suffered an embarrassing 85-run defeat against Papua New Guinea (PNG) in the final of the Hong Kong Men’s T20 Series on Wednesday.

Batting first, PNG scored 171 runs for the loss of eight wickets despite being four down with just 43 runs on the board. In reply, Nepal folded for a paltry 85 runs in 16.3 overs.  It was Nepal’s fifth lowest score in T20I.

Although PNG lost opener Sese Bau in the very second ball of the innings, another opener Tony Ura scored 61 off 37 balls. Although he lost partners on the other end, he found support from lower-order batsmen. PNG had already scored 113 runs in 13.4 overs when he departed. Alei Nao scored an unbeaten 30 from 10 balls, while Hila Vare scored 18, Hiri Hiri struck 15, and Had Coper and Kiplin Doriga contributed 13 and 14 runs, respectively. Nepali bowlers conceded 13 extra runs.

Nepal came under pressure early in the chase as Kabua Morea got both the openers in his first two overs. Binod Bhandari was the first to depart after scoring four runs, while Kushal Bhurtel scored five from eight balls. Rohit Poudel and Gulshan Jha followed suit, scoring 12 and six runs, respectively. Sandeep Jora top-scored for Nepal with a 13-ball 17, while Aarif Sheikh scored 15 runs off 20 balls. Other Nepali bowlers failed to reach double digits.

Kabua Morea, Semo Kamea, Chad Soper, and Sese Bau each took two wickets for PNG, while Alei Nao had a wicket to his name. PNG’s Tony Ura was declared both Player of the Match and Player of the Series.

Nepal played four matches on its Hong Kong tour, winning only one. It suffered heavy defeats against Hong Kong and PNG, while its league match of the tri-series was washed out by rain.