Nepal pulled off a sensational 39-run victory over hosts Oman to make a flying start to their ICC Twenty20 World Cup Global Qualifiers at the Al Amerat Cricket Grounds in Muscat on Friday.

After an under-par start in the batting department, Nepal bounced back with the ball to bowl out Oman for a meagre total of 78 runs with three overs to spare. Pacer Kamal Singh Airee grabbed three wickets while captain Sandeep Lamichhane and Dipendra Singh Airee took two scalps each.

Earlier, put to bat first, Nepal struggled with the bat and were restricted at 117-8 at close.

“The wicket was not that good and we had expected we could easily defend the total if we scored around 140 runs. But we could collect just 117 runs. However, we were confident that if it was difficult for us to bat then they also would face a similar situation and we also have better bowlers. So we did not panic,” said captain Sandip Lamichhane.

The victory in the opening match at the four-team group ‘B’ that also comprises Canada and the Philippines, strengthened Nepal’s bid for qualification into the semi-finals. The top two teams of the group will secure semi-final berths. Nepal are scheduled to play against the Philippines on Saturday before taking on Canada on Monday.

Nepal made a shaky start to their innings and lost wickets in regular intervals. Middle order batter Aarif Sheikh contributed highest for Nepal scoring 38 off 37. The player-of-the-match hit two boundaries.

“We were able to post a challenging total on the back of Aarif’s brilliant performance with the bat. The win was possible due to brilliant teamwork. But we need to improve on many fronts and a single mistake can play spoilsports for our World Cup ambition. We still need to improve in the batting department,” he added.

Openers Kushal Bhurtel and Aasif Sheikh departed cheaply scoring five and four runs respectively at 2-12 on board. Former captain Gyanendra Malla, who contributed ball-a-run 15, was the next wicket to fall after he was bowled out by Fayyaz Butt. He hit two fences.

Dipendra was the next batter to depart, scoring 11 off 18 with 4-40 on board. Aarif who came to bat at number five tried to give stability to Nepali and was run out in the last delivery of the innings.

Rookie Lokesh Bam and captain Lamichhane contributed equal 16 runs each. While Bam hit a six in his 17-ball knock, captain Lamichhane, who came to bat at number nine, made a decent contribution to anchor the innings in his seven-ball knock. He hit a four and a six remaining unbeaten. Bibek Yadav contributed seven runs.

Oman’s Khawar Ali was the pick of the bowling claiming three wickets in his four-over spell conceding 30 runs. Bilal Khan claimed two wickets in his three-over spell giving away 25 runs while Fayyaz Butt and Zeeshan Maqsood pocketed one wicket each.

Chasing the moderate target, the home team also made a poor start to their run chase. Lower middle order batter Naseem Khushi was the only Oman player to touch a double digit figure. The wicketkeeper batter hit 18-ball 24 before being bowled by Lamichhane. He hit a fence and two sixes.

Oman opener Kashyap Prajapati was out for a duck in the third ball of the innings after he was caught by Dipendra off Kamal. Ayaan Khan was the next wicket to fall as he was caught by wicketkeeper Aasif in Jitendra Mukhiya’s delivery with 2-7 on board.

The other opener Jatinder Singh was run out in the sixth over by Dipendra while Khawar Ali was bowled for seven runs with 4-31 on board. Nepal got the prized wicket of captain Zeeshan Maqsood for two runs as he was caught by Kushal Bhurtel off Mukhiya with 5-33.

Aamir Kaleem contributed nine runs before he was trapped leg before by Dipendra. Shoaib Khan (1) Kaleemullah (5) and Bilal Khan (0) were out cheaply while Fayyaz Butt remained not out on six runs.

“We were however wary that if Oman maintained the run rate, it would be difficult on the pitch. But we got early wickets and played with confidence. We also got regular wickets,” he said.

Nepal’s Kamal was the pick of bowling claiming three wickets in his three-over spell conceding 15 runs. Lamichhane and Dipendra pocketed two wickets apiece while Mukhiya and Abinash Bohara picked one wicket each. Lamichhane gave away 20 runs in his four-over bowling while Dipendra conceded 15 runs in his four-over spell.

In another match of the group, Canada registered a thumping 118-run win over the Philippines. Put to bat first, Canada scored a massive total of 216-1 after opener Matthew Spoors played a quickfire 66-ball 108 remaining not out. His opening pair Rayyan Pathan scored 73 off 44.

Chasing the target, the Philippines were restricted to 98-5 as Kaleem Sana and Saad Bin Zafar grabbed two wickets apiece.