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| Kathmandu, Tuesday April 16, 2002 Baishakh 03, 2059. |
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Bhaktapur thrash Nuwakot
Post Report
KATHMANDU, April 15 – A record 160-run
unbeaten partnership for the fourth wicket between Subrat Pandey and Ramesh Aryal powered
Bhaktapur to a seven-wicket victory over Nuwakot, their first in the Regional Cricket
Selection tournament on Monday.
Nuwakot won the toss and elected to bat first
and scored healthy 188-7 runs in their allotted 40 overs. But the brilliant 160-run stand,
the highest in the tournament for any wicket, between veteran Pandey and Aryal guided
Bhaktapur to the target at ease in just 35.3 overs for the loss of just three wickets.
Things did not go as Nuwakot would have liked as
they lost two early wickets. Bhaktapur’s Kishan Gurung, demonstrating his all-round
ability first run out Niraj Pahadi and then bowled Indra Kumar Gurung for naught.
It was only because of Nuwakot’s in-form
batsman Rakesh Kumar Singh, who displayed a solid batting with a strokeful 74 runs off
just 78 balls to rebuild the innings. During his aggressive onslaught Singh smashed as
many as eight boundaries. He had made 70 runs in his first match against Tribhuvan
University a day before.
Singh, together with Rajkumar Thapa (17), put on
91 runs to amend the early damage. And some late onslaughts by Ramesh Shrestha (27 off 26
balls) and Raju Chhetri (20 off 17 balls) skied the target as both the batsmen remained
unbeaten to pose 189-run in full quota of 40 overs.
Right arm off-spinner Niraj Pahadi was the pick
of Bhaktapur bowling claiming three wickets in his eight-over spell that cost 28 runs.
Gabin Thapa, Maheshwor Shrestha and Sujan Karki also came up with one each.
Bhaktapur innings looked like a complete mess
when three toporder batsmen went cheaply with just 30 runs on the board. Paceman Johnny JK
was the destructor in chief sending the toporders to the pavilion with a wicket in his
second over and two off consecutive balls in the fourth.
But Pandey and Aryal caused miseries to the rest
of the bowlers belting them all over the ground in their 26-over-long marathon
partnership. Pandey smashed nine fours in his 110-ball knock while Aryal played an
anchoring innings facing 80 balls that featured no sixer and boundaries.
All the teams participating at the tournament
are on equal points with a win except Nuwakot who are yet to open their account. Lalitpur
and Kathmandu have one match in hand while Nuwakot, TU and Bhaktapur have played two games
each. After the match, Nripendra Bhattarai, a member of organising committee and Baluwatar
Cricket Club awarded the man-of-the-match prize to Subrat Pandey. |
