Kathmandu: An unbeaten 209-run opening partnership by Mankeshi Chaudhary and Binita Pun helped Nepal beat India by 10 wickets to take an unassailable lead in the fourth match of the Women’s T20 Bilateral Series for the Blind being played here at the Mulpani Cricket Ground. Nepal had won the first match while India levelled the series in the next match only for Nepal to take the lead in the series in the third match.
Nepal Captain Bhagwati Bhattarai won the toss and sent India to bat first. India lost quick wickets in the first six overs and could not create momentum from the start. Deepika, Basanti Hansda and Ravani were dismissed when the score read only 29. Captain for the match, H. Gangavva and Jhili Birua then came together and resurrected the innings stitching together a 93-run partnership for the fourth wicket.
Ganga was dismissed in the 13th over after scoring 56 of 27 balls. Jhili was soon dismissed after two overs after scoring 44 of 28 balls. Simu Das (32), Phula Saren (24) and U. Varsha (14) played cameos towards the end to take India’s score past 200. India eventually ended their innings at 207/6 in 20 overs. Sarita Ghimire took a wicket for Nepal.
Chasing the big target, Nepal openers Mankeshi Chaudhary and Binita Pun who are in good form in the series gave a hard time for the Indian bowlers. They scored runs freely and were finding the boundaries at will. Mankeshi remained unbeaten with a century, scoring 116 of 59 balls with the help of 17 boundaries. Binita Pun who has already scored two centuries in the series played second fiddle to Mankeshi this time. She also remained unbeaten on 89 of 50 balls with the help of 13 boundaries. Nepal crossed the target in 17.5 overs.
The final match of the series will be played tomorrow at Mulpani Cricket Stadium, Kathmandu.
Brief Scores
India – 207/6 in 20 Overs (H. Ganga – 56, Jhili Birua – 44, Simu Das – 32, Phula Saren – 24 no, U. Varsha – 14 no; Sarita Ghimire – 1/30) lost to Nepal – 209/0 in 17.5 Overs (Mankeshi Chaudhary – 116 no, Binita Pun – 89 no)
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