Sandeep Lamichhane at home is something else. Nepal’s leg-spin ace produced one of the most clinical bowling performances you’ll see in international T20 cricket – 3 wickets for just 6 runs off 4 overs, economy rate 1.50 – and Kushal Bhurtel finished the job with an unbeaten 84 to send Nepal to an 8-wicket win over the United Arab Emirates at Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground, Kirtipur. The hosts wrapped it up with 25 balls to spare.
UAE Batting Collapse Sets the Tone
UAE were in trouble almost immediately after Nepal won the toss and chose to field. Captain Muhammad Waseem was gone first ball – lbw to Hemant Dhami – and Harpreet Singh Bhatia followed in the next over for 1, also to Dhami. At 20/3, the innings was already leaking fast.
Adeeb Usmani provided brief resistance with a brisk 30 off 22 balls before Sandeep Lamichhane cleaned him up lbw. From that point, the middle order crumbled. Sohaib Khan and Nilansh Keswani both went for ducks in consecutive deliveries, leaving UAE reeling at 48/6.
Akshdeep Nath (53* off 42) and Muhammad Arfan (32 off 36) put on a 64-run partnership to drag UAE to something respectable, but the damage was done. Lamichhane returned to remove Arfan and Khuzaima Tanveer in consecutive balls to finish with figures of 3/6 off 4 overs – a spell that effectively settled the match. UAE posted 128/8 from their 20 overs.
For context on how miserly that Lamichhane spell was: across all of UAE’s bowlers in the Nepal chase, not one managed an economy close to 1.50. This was match-winning bowling.
Bhurtel Leads Comfortable Chase
Nepal’s run chase was calm from the outset. Kushal Bhurtel and Kushal Malla put on 43 together before Malla was caught for 19. Santosh Yadav came and went quickly for 1, stumped off Nilansh Keswani – the only moment of genuine UAE pressure in the innings.
Bhurtel was immovable. He reached 84 not out off 57 balls, hitting 12 fours and 2 sixes at a strike rate of 147.37. Captain Dipendra Singh Airee joined him and smashed 23* off just 17 to accelerate the finish. Nepal crossed the line in the 16th over.
It was comprehensive from start to finish – Nepal’s bowlers restricted UAE to below 130, and their openers barely needed to break sweat to get there. On home soil at Kirtipur, this Nepal side looks a seriously tough proposition.
Statz Ratings
Statz Cricket’s comprehensive match performance metric – combining batting impact, bowling effectiveness, and contextual factors on a 0-100 scale – returned a perfect score for the standout performer:
- Sandeep Lamichhane (Nepal) – 100.0
- Kushal Bhurtel (Nepal) – 49.5
- Hemant Dhami (Nepal) – 42.2
- Muhammad Arfan (UAE) – 34.9
- Akshdeep Nath (UAE) – 33.1
Lamichhane’s perfect 100.0 is a rare mark – reserved for truly match-defining performances. Three wickets for 6 runs in a T20 international earns that. View the full Statz Ratings on the fixture page.
Result Summary
United Arab Emirates: 128/8 (20 ov) – Akshdeep Nath 53* (42b), Muhammad Arfan 32 (36b), Adeeb Usmani 30 (22b)
Nepal: 129/2 (15.5 ov) – Kushal Bhurtel 84* (57b), Dipendra Singh Airee 23* (17b)
Nepal won by 8 wickets (with 25 balls remaining)
For full scorecard and match data, visit the Statz Cricket fixture page. Check the latest T20I standings and T20I wicket leaders at Statz Cricket.
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Figures from the Statz data desk. Odds are subject to change. 18+, BeGambleAware.org