Nepal won an edge-of-the-seat thriller against Afghanistan by one wicket to qualify for the Super Sixes while West Indies edged home against England and Bangladesh saw off a spirited USA side.
Aakash Chand starred with a stirring five-wicket haul for Nepal in their nail-biting one-wicket win over Afghanistan to qualify for the Super Six stage of the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup.
Meanwhile, West Indies too edged England in another close game in Potchefstroom with Nathan Edward starring in a brilliant all-round performance.
Ariful Islam’s outstanding hundred was the cornerstone for Bangladesh’s comfortable win over USA in Bloemfontein.
Nepal led by Aakash Chand’s superb spell put on a strong bowling performance against Afghanistan.
Asked to bowl first, Nepal struck five times in the Powerplay, including once each in the first two overs.
Gulshan Jha opened up with the wicket of Numan Shah in the very first over before Chand took the lead, snaring five wickets before the 12-over mark.
Pegged back by Chand’s sensational bowling display, Afghanistan’s tail needed to wag to take them out of the rut they were in. From 43/6, Naseer Khan and Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar, the latter going for the big shots in a counterattacking cameo, added 42 runs for the seventh wicket to give Afghanistan’s score a lift. (ICC)
