Nepal A defeated Ireland A in the third T20 encounter by a thrilling 3-run margin. Nepal lost the three-match series 2-1.
Chasing a 214-run target, Ireland achieved 210 runs while losing 7 wickets in 20 overs. Gareth Delaney of Ireland hit 68 runs off 37 balls, including five fours and five sixes. Morgan Topping was caught at long-on by Pawan Saraf for 60 runs off 37 balls, including four fours and four sixes.
Ireland once reached 52/4 in 7.1 overs, then Morgan and Gareth Delaney put on a stunning century partnership of 129 runs for the fifth wicket to keep their hopes of victory alive. Ireland A's opener, Ross Adair, was dismissed for 31 runs off 14 balls, including 5 fours and 1 six, and Finn Hand for 22. Needing 20 runs in the final over, Rashid Khan wasted 16 runs and grabbed one wicket to give Nepal a thrilling victory.
Bipin Khatri got three wickets for 23 runs in Nepal's triumph, including one maiden, in four overs. Narayan Joshi, Kamal Singh Airi, and Rashid Khan took one wicket each.
Nepal lost the toss and scored 213 runs in 20 overs, losing seven wickets. Arif Sheikh scored an undefeated 93 runs off 47 balls in Nepal's triumph, including 7 fours and 6 sixes. Finally, fast bowler Kamal Singh Airi hit 19 runs in 7 balls, including 2 fours and 1 six.
Nepal lost opener Lokesh Bam for 8, Dev Khanal for 6, and Vinod Bhandari for 11 runs. Basir Ahmed and Arif Shaikh contributed 47 runs for the fourth wicket. Basir was caught lbw for 19 runs and three fours off 21 balls.
Pawan Saraf was removed for 13 runs, and Narayan Joshi for 1. Rashid Khan scored 24 runs off 13 balls, including three sixes.
Finn Handley from Ireland took two, while Liam McCarthy, Matthew Foster, Gareth Delaney, and Gavin Hoy each took one. Nepal has already lost the series, losing the first two games by 21 and 40 runs. There will be an ODI series between Ireland A and Nepal A. The first match will take place on Wednesday, the second on Friday, and the third on Sunday.
