Nepal has secured a spot in the ICC U-19 Women’s World Cup in Malaysia by defeating the host team UAE.
In the final match of the Asia regional qualifiers on Wednesday, Nepal emerged as the group winner by clinching a convincing 8-wicket victory over the UAE. Chasing UAE’s target of 84 runs, Nepal achieved it in 14.4 overs with the loss of only two wickets.
With this qualification, Nepal has been placed in Group D alongside Australia, Bangladesh, and Scotland. The U-19 World Cup will take place in Malaysia from January 18 to February 2.
Despite both Nepal and UAE earning 10 points from six matches, Nepal advanced due to a superior net run rate, with Nepal’s net run rate at 3.9353 compared to UAE’s 3.7403. In the league phase, both Nepal and UAE won five matches each and suffered one loss.
For Nepal, Sana Pravin remained unbeaten on 35, and Soni Pakhrin on 13. Captain Puja Mahato scored 21 before getting out lbw, and opener Savitri Dhami was caught out for 12.
Earlier, UAE won the toss and elected to bat at The Sevens Stadium in Ajman, where they scored a total of 83 runs for the loss of 9 wickets in the allotted 20 overs.
Samaira Dharanidharkar scored the highest for UAE with 31 runs, followed by Rinitha Rajith with 20. Lavanya Kenny and Induja Nandkumar each scored 10, while four batters were dismissed for zero.
For Nepal, Krishma Gurung took 4 wickets, conceding 17 runs in her spell. Riya Sharma and Sima KC took 2 wickets each, while Rachana Kumari Chaudhary claimed one wicket.
Nepal, who had previously lost to UAE by 13 runs, avenged that defeat with this victory. In the qualifiers, UAE was the only team to beat Nepal.
In the league stage, Nepal defeated Thailand by 67 runs in the first match and by 106 runs in the second.
Against Kuwait, Nepal secured a massive 108-run win in the first match and an even more dominant 165-run win in the second.
