Nepal posted 280 against hosts Oman in their final ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 match on Monday, with Rohit Paudel and Dipendra Singh Airee rescuing the innings with a record 139-run stand for the fourth wicket.
After winning the toss at the Al Amerat Cricket Ground, Nepal were bowled out for 280 in 50 overs. They got off to a poor start, with opener Aasif Sheikh dismissed for seven.
Dev Khanal and Ishan Pandey added 64 runs for the second wicket. Pandey scored 29 off 60 balls before departing, while Khanal made 57 off 65 balls, including four fours and a six, for his fourth ODI half-century.
Khanal was playing his first match of the ongoing tri-series, having replaced Arjun Kumal.
Paudel and Airee steadied the innings with a 139-run partnership for the fourth wicket, Nepal’s highest for that wicket in ODI cricket. Airee scored 69 off 62 balls, hitting four sixes and three fours, while Paudel top-scored with 80 off 81 balls, including two fours and two sixes.
With that innings, Paudel became the first and only Nepali batter to reach 1,000 runs in the current cycle of the League 2 competition.
Bashir Ahmed provided a late boost, scoring 17 off just seven balls to help Nepal finish with a challenging total.
For Oman, Shah Faisal claimed five wickets for 57 runs in eight overs, his best figures in ODI cricket and his first five-wicket haul in the format. Jay Odedra took three wickets, while Samay Shrivastava claimed two.