Kushal Bhurtel & Aarif Sheikh help Nepal chase down 175 to top table

Michael Levitt scored a quickfire 86 off 53, following his 90 against Scotland, but his efforts were in vain in the T20 tri-series fixture on Thursday as Nepal triumphed over Netherlands by six wickets. Levitt's knock helped Netherlands post 174 for 7, but Nepal chased down the target with two balls to spare, thanks to solid contributions from opener Kushal Bhurtel and Aarif Sheikh. Asked to bat first, Netherlands were in trouble early on, losing four wickets for 45 runs in the powerplay. Levitt, on the other hand, scored a half-century in 20 balls as Saqib Zulfiqar and Levitt put together a 63-run stand for the fifth wicket to stabilize the innings. Sandeep Lamichhane stumped Zulfiqar for 14 in the 12th over, giving Nepal another chance to win. Levitt, who had hit six fours and five sixes in three overs, was run out by fast bowler Karan KC three overs later, putting the Netherlands on 127 for 6. Despite losing a few quick wickets, Netherlands mounted a fightback. Roelof van der Merwe, the experienced allrounder, raised the tempo with a rapid and unbeaten 36 off 21 balls. He shared a crucial 45-run partnership off just 30 balls with Aryan Dutt for the eighth wicket to lift Netherlands to a competitive total. In contrast, Nepal had a solid start to their chase, accumulating 60 runs in the powerplay for the loss of just one wicket. Bhurtel reached his fifty off 38 balls and put on 54 runs for the second wicket with Bhim Sharki, who contributed with a brisk 16-ball 27. Van der Merwe bowled Sharki in the ninth over, and Nepal lost their captain, Rohit Paudel, in the 12th over for just 5. However, Bhurtel continued to strike at a steady pace, and by the time he was dismissed for 65, Nepal only needed 34 runs off 26 balls. They got closer with a quick 39 off 23 balls from Aarif Sheikh, who hit three fours and two sixes before hurtly retiring in the penultimate over with Nepal just seven runs behind. Lokesh Bam finished things off with two sixes in the last over for Nepal's second win in a row since their Super Over loss to Netherlands. With four points, Nepal has jumped to the top of the points table. Netherlands, having played four matches, are tied on points but are placed second due to an inferior net run rate. Nepal will now face Scotland, who are on two points after three matches, in the last game of the series on Friday.