On Tuesday, May 2, Nepal defeated United Arab Emirates by seven wickets in the ACC Premier Cup 2023 championship match. A victory also assisted Nepal in securing the last available slot in the September 2023 Asia Cup.
In order to knock out UAE on only 117 runs while bowling first, the left-arm spinner Lalit Rajbanshi claimed four wickets and the former captain Sandeep Lamichhane picked up two for 34. With just 22 runs scored, Nepal lost both of its openers, Kushal Bhurtel and Aasif Sheikh, as well as star skipper Rohit Paudel, as UAE seemed to be the favourite to defend the target.
But after moving up to the third spot, Gulshan Jha, a 17-year-old pace all-rounder, played a match-winning knock. In an unbroken 96-run partnership for the fourth wicket with Bhim Sharki, Gulshan struck 67* off 84. This was Gulshan's only second fifty and greatest score in international cricket. While Lamichhane received the Player of the Series award for his contribution with 13 wickets in just four innings, he won the Player of the Match award.
Nepal won the last available slot for the 2023 Asia Cup and will compete in the competition for the first time. Hong Kong made its tournament debut at the Asia Cup T20 2022, although they were unable to advance to the fifty-over version of the competition. Due to their position as full members of the ICC, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh have automatically qualified.
With Pakistan serving as the big tournament's host, Nepal will be placed in Group A against the likes of superpowers India and Pakistan. In July, Nepal, the United Arab Emirates, and Oman will compete in the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup 2023 against A teams from five other full members from Asia.
