MUMBAI: West Indies powered into the Super Eight stage of the Twenty20 World Cup on Sunday with a dominant nine-wicket victory over Nepal, as Jason Holder and captain Shai Hope led a comprehensive display in Mumbai.
Chasing a modest target of 134 for their third consecutive Group C win, West Indies reached 135-1 with 28 balls to spare at Wankhede Stadium.
Nepal were restricted to 133-9 after battling contributions from Dipendra Singh Airee, who top-scored with 58, and Sompal Kami, who added an unbeaten 26. Holder laid the foundation with a four-wicket haul, putting Nepal under sustained pressure.
Hope anchored the chase with an unbeaten 61, while Shimron Hetmyer struck a fluent 46 not out as West Indies cruised home to seal qualification and end Nepal’s hopes of progressing.“I’m very pleased. This is what we set out to do and we got here,” Hope said. “That’s one hurdle we’ve crossed and now it’s on to the next stage. It’s crunch time now, back into the Super Eights.”
Nepal came into the match seeking their first win of the tournament after losses to England and Italy, a little over four months after their confidence-boosting 2-1 T20 series victory over a weakened West Indies side in Sharjah.
