Nepal U-19 185 for 8 in 50 overs (Jitendra Singh 36, Dipendra Singh Airee 88; Aditya Thakara 2-33, Abhishek Sharma 2-39) beat India U-19 166 all out in 48.1 overs (Himanshu Rana 36, Manjot Kalra 35, Abhishek Sharma 27; Dipendra Singh Airee 4-39, Pawan Sarraf 2-24, Shahab Alam 2-11) by 19 runs
Nepal stunned defending champions India on the third day of the Under-19 Asia Cup in Kuala Lumpur. Playing a key role in the 19-run win was the captain Dipendra Singh Airee. First he made 88 in Nepal’s modest 185 for 8. Then he took 4 for 39 to wrestle India down from 91 for 1 to 166 all out.
There were several points in the match when the eventual result looked quite unlikely. Like when Himanshu Rana got the chase off to a brisk start, smacking seven fours and a six in his 38-ball 46. Though he fell to Kamal Singh Airee, an equation of 96 off .
Kalra and Atharva Taide added 26, albeit at a slow pace. At 91 for 1 in the 23rd over, the chase was well under control. But Taide’s departure resulted in complete breakdown in momentum.
Dipendra wasn’t a one-man army though. He had support from Pawan Sarraf and Shalab Alam, who picked up two wickets apiece to ensure India’s lower order wouldn’t snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. The openers aside, the only other contribution of note for India was captain Abhishek Sharma’s 27.
Earlier in the day, Dipendra rescued a floundering innings after Nepal lost their openers inside 10 overs. He added 49 for the third wicket with Jitendra Singh, before taking charge. He hit six fours and two sixes in his 101-ball vigil before falling in the penultimate over.
Source: ESPN Crickinfo