Nepal and the United Arab Emirates advanced to the ACC Premier Cup final, Nepal by virtue of their group stage performance after their semi-final against Kuwait at the TU Ground was called off due to torrential rain, and the UAE by the narrowest of DLS margins over Oman when the weather arrived at Mulpani.
Given the state of the match when the rain came, the Kuwaitis are unlikely to feel unduly aggrieved, as their innings was in shambles at 37-6 chasing 281 when the skies opened. Oman may feel somewhat unlucky, however, as two wickets fell just before the cloudburst, leaving them 2 runs shy of par at 190-6 after 43 overs in pursuit of the Emiratis’ total of 236.
Surprise semi-finalists Adnan Idrees and Mohammad Aslam fought back with the ball after the powerplay to see Nepal stutter from 77 without loss to 80-3, but a composed captain’s knock from young Rohit Paudel steadied the innings, adding 109 with Kushal Malla before accelerating after eight overs were lost to the weather, finally holing out in the last over six runs short of a well-earned century.
The combination of Karan KC’s new ball bowling and Lalit Rajbanshi’s and DS Airee’s outstanding catches effectively ended Kuwait’s pursuit before it had even begun. Before the rain returned, Karan completed a five-wicket haul, with Sompal Kami also contributing a wicket as Kuwait collapsed to 37-6.
The ACC Premier Cup final will be contested between Nepal and the United Arab Emirates.
The Kuwaiti innings were cut short by rain after 8.3 overs, and despite the fact that the outcome was almost certain at that point, the game will be recorded as a no-result. As Nepal leads Kuwait in the Group Phase standings, the issue is largely academic, with the hosts advancing to the final while Kuwait advances to the third-place match.
There, they will confront Oman, who lost a much closer battle with the United Arab Emirates. Throughout the first innings, the Emiratis were held in check by captain Zeeshan Maqsood and pace spearhead (and tournament leading wicket-taker) Bilal Khan, who each took four wickets.
No Emirati bat would make it to fifty if held in elderly hands. Muhammad Waseem and Rameez Shahzad both came close, their respective scores of 48 and 46, along with a useful cameo from the returning Basil Hameed down the order, were sufficient to propel the UAE to a defendable, albeit not particularly imposing, 236 all-out.
Oman appeared to have the pursuit well in hand for the majority of the second innings, with Jatinder Singh and Kashyap Prajpati contributing an assured 79 for the opening wicket. However, leg-spinner Karthik Meiyappan precipitated a minor collapse by claiming three consecutive wickets to reduce Oman to 119-3 at the halfway point.
It’s down to the ACC Premier Cup final between Nepal and the UAE.
A half-century partnership between Maqsood and Mohammad Nadeem placed Oman back in control, if not on top, and as the clouds began to close in, it appeared that they had done enough, despite Zahoor Khan having bowled Maqsood for a dogged 40 off 70.
Basil Hameed would have the final say, however, as in the final over before the rain he had Aayan Khan caught off his third delivery, and three deliveries later he enticed Sandeep Gous into an ill-advised drive and took the edge, with Aravind taking the catch behind the wickets as the clouds broke.
There would be no resumption, and Duckworth Lewis Stern’s final two wickets proved decisive, putting Oman two runs behind par. UAE advances to the final to face the hosts by the slimmest of margins, leaving both teams hoping the weather will allow them to determine on the field who will claim the lone spot at this year’s Asia Cup.
Both are assured of qualification for the ACC Emerging Teams Cup later in the year, where they will be joined by the under-23 teams of the Asian Full Members and the victor of tomorrow’s third-place match between Kuwait and Oman.
The weather forecast for the next few days in Kathmandu is gloomy, jeopardizing both the third-place match and the championship. The final is scheduled for May 1, with a reserve day on the following day.