Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: Last year’s runners-up Sudurpashchim Royals began the new Nepal Premier League (NPL) campaign with a 29-run victory over Kathmandu Gorkhas at the TU International Cricket Ground in Kathmandu on Wednesday.
Batting first after losing the toss, Sudurpashchim recovered from early setbacks to post 147 runs in the allotted 20 overs. Chasing 147 for their second win in as many matches, Kathmandu were bowled out for 118 in 16.5 overs.
Sudurpashchim lost their top three wickets with just four runs on the board. Openers Josh Brown and Binod Bhandari departed for ducks, while Chris Lynn (2) was caught by Milind Kumar off Karna KC in the third over. Aarif Sheikh steadied the innings with a 24-ball 25, supported by Ishan Pandey, who scored 11 off 9 balls. Captain Dipendra Singh Airee added 39 off 30, while Harmeet Singh smashed a quickfire 53 off just 20 deliveries to take Sudurpashchim close to 150. No other Sudurpashchim batter reached double figures.
Karan KC took four wickets for Kathmandu, conceding 30 runs in his four-over spell. Milind Kumar, Sunny Patel and Rashid Khan picked up two wickets each.
Although Kathmandu lost opener Ben Charlesworth (8) early in the chase, fellow opener Aakash Tripathi kept them in the hunt with a 30-ball 34. But he received little support from the other end, as Bhim Sharki (8) and Santosh Yadav (1) departed cheaply. Josh Simpson (24) and Milind Kumar (11) offered some resistance, but Sudurpashchim maintained pressure by taking wickets at regular intervals. Sunny Patel scored 10.
Sudurpashchim’s Harmeet Singh, who struck a half-century and claimed two wickets, was adjudged Player of the Match.
Thursday’s Fixture:
Chitwan Rhinos vs Lumbini Lions
