The Nepal cricket team scripted history on Saturday with their 19-run win over West Indies at the Sharjah Cricket Ground in a landmark moment for the nation experiencing a revolution back home.
Nepal posted a total of 148 runs and went on to defend it by limiting the Windies to 129/9 to complete a historic triumph, which skipper Rohit Paudel said was a tribute to the protestors back home.
“Want to dedicate this award to the martyrs back home who participated in the protest,” the skipper said following the watershed victory for the nation which experienced a revolution in recent weeks.
“The last month has not been great for us, so if we can give a little bit of happiness to the people of Nepal, I think that would be great. It’s just the beginning,
a lot more to come,” he said.
“It’s feeling great, a long wait to beat a Test-playing country, that too it has come in a series we have hosted in the UAE. 150-160 was par here, looking at the previous series here, teams were winning after scoring 150-160,” he explained.
“80-90 per cent, we have matched our skills, the spinners were great today, as well as the experienced Karan and Sompal,” Paudel added.
Paudel led from the front with a 38-run knock off 35 deliveries, while Kushal Malla’s 30-run contribution and Gulshan Jha’s 22 helped the side despite Jason Holder’s four-fer.
Kushal Bhurtel led the Nepali bowling attack which ensured to snap any momentum the Windies might have generated with wickets at regular intervals. Bhurtel picked up a couple of wickets while Dipendra Singh Airee, Karan KC, Nandan Yadav, Lalit Rajbanshi and Paudel all removed a wicket each to complee the famous riumph in the United Arab Emirates.
The win also helped Nepal take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series between the sides with the second fixture slated for the 29th of September.
