The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Asia Region Final witnessed the first upset as Nepal lost their first game of the tournament to Qatar. Nepal, who came in as the tournament favourites, collapsed with the bat against Qatar. After electing to bat first, Nepal openers added 49 runs before losing their first wicket at the end of the powerplay. However, lack of big stands from the middle-order saw the Paras Khadka-led side bowled out for only 122.
Nepal kept picking up wickets regularly but couldn’t stop the flow of runs by Qatar. The chasing side reached the target with four wickets and four balls to spare. Nepal will now face Malaysia whom they beat 2-0 in the 2-match T20I series earlier this month. Malaysia began this tournament with an easy 42-run win against Kuwait on the first day. Three different players scored 30+ runs and four players took 2+ wickets for Malaysia.
Match Details:
The 5th match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Asia Region Final 2019 will be played between Malaysia and Nepal will be hosted by the Indian Association Ground in Singapore.
The match starts at 9:30 AM local time (7:00 AM IST) (1:30 AM GMT). This game will be streamed live on Singapore Cricket Facebook page.
Last five completed T20I matches:
Malaysia: W, L, L, W, W.
Nepal: L, W, W, W, W.
Pitch Condition/Report:
The game between Nepal and Qatar was a low-scoring affair as it was probably played on a used surface. The rain in the afternoon could have added moisture and freshened up the track. Totals around 150 can be expected during this game between Nepal and Malaysia.
Average first innings score: 157 (T20I matches)
Record of chasing teams: Won – 1, Lost – 2
Probable Playing XIs:
Nepal:
Paras Khadka (c), Gyanendra Malla, Rohit Kumar Paudel, Sharad Vesawkar, Dipendra Singh Airee, Binod Bhandari (wk), Karan KC, Sompal Kami, Basant Regmi, Sandeep Lamichhane, Abhinash Bohara.
Bench: Lalit Narayan Rajbanshi, Pawan Sarraf, Pradeep Airee.
Malaysia:
Virandeep Singh, Anwar Arudin, Syed Aziz, Shafiq Sharif, Ahmad Faiz (C), Aminuddin Ramly, Muhamad Syahadat, Sharvin Muniandy, Muhammad Anwar, Fitri Sham, Pavandeep Singh.
Bench: Abdul Rashid, Nazril Rahman, Neville Liyanage, Pasha Syafiq Ali.
Injury and Availability News:
(Will be added when there is an update)
Power Picks:
Syed Aziz in T20I cricket:
With bat – 240 runs from 7 innings at an average of 48 with 3 fifties (Highest run-getter for Malaysia)
With ball – 4 wickets from 5 innings at an average of 33
Captain and Vice-Captain Selection:
Captain Options: Paras Khadka, Syed Aziz, Karan KC, Shafiq Sharif, Sandeep Lamichhane
Vice-Captain Options: Sompal Kami, Ahmad Faiz, Sharad Vesawkar, Muhamad Syahadat, Binod Bhandari
Suggested Playing XI for Head to Head/Small Leagues:
Keeper – Shafiq Sharif
Batsmen – Paras Khadka, Gyanendra Malla, Ahmad Faiz, Muhamad Syahadat
All-Rounders – Karan KC, Dipendra Singh Airee, Syed Aziz (C)
Bowlers – Sandeep Lamichhane (VC), Fitri Sham, Pavandeep Singh
Suggested Playing XI for Grand Leagues/Mega Leagues:
Keeper – Binod Bhandari
Batsmen – Paras Khadka (C), Sharad Vesawkar, Aminuddin Ramly, Muhamad Syahadat
All-Rounders – Karan KC (VC), Syed Aziz, Sompal Kami
Bowlers – Sandeep Lamichhane, Fitri Sham, Muhammad Anwar
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Expert Advice:
Malaysia is unlikely to make changes to their playing XI that won against Kuwait. Nepal collapsed against Qatar by playing an extra bowler. They might bring in Rohit Kumar Paudel for Lalit Narayan Rajbanshi.
Probable Winners:
Nepal is expected to bounce back and register their 3rd consecutive win over Malaysia this month.
