An unbeaten century from opener Kushal Bhurtel guided Nepal to a thumping 136-run win over the Philippines as they registered their second straight win to inch closer to the semi-finals of the ICC World Twenty20 Global Qualifiers at the Al Amerat Cricket Ground in Muscat on Saturday.

Put into bat first, opener Bhurtel and Dipendra Singh Airee shone with the bat as Nepal amassed a huge total of 218-3. Bhurtel smashed an unbeaten 104 off 61 balls to score his maiden century while Airee cracked 47-ball 83. Bhurtel also became the third batter to reach a century for Nepal in the T20I after former captains Paras Khadka and Gyanendra Malla.

Chasing the target, the Philippines were restricted to 82-3.

The duo also shared the highest partnership for Nepal in any format of international cricket, sharing a third wicket stand of 171 runs.

With the second win in a row, Nepal, who edged hosts Oman by 39 runs, climbed on top of group 'B' with four points. They are scheduled to take on Canada in the last group stage fixture on Monday. A victory over Canada will send Nepal to the semis as group winners. Even in case of a narrow defeat, Nepal would still remain in the contention for semi-final. After playing equal two matches, Canada and Oman have two points each.

"I was waiting for this day as I was unable to score in the previous games. The century will definitely boost confidence ahead of the Canada game," said Bhurtel of his maiden career century.

Nepal's coach Pubudu Dassanayake said that they still have a long way to go. "I am happy to see the top order score like today. We want to win every match. We will field our best 11 against Canada on Monday," said the coach.

Nepal failed to make a bright start as they lost opener Aasif for a duck in the very first ball he faced. He was trapped leg before by Daniel Smith in the first ball of the second over. Kushal Malla was the second wicket to fall as he was caught by Muzammil Shahzad off Miggy Podosky.

"We could not start as expected after losing Aasif Sheik for a golden duck. But I was able to play comfortably once Airee came at the crease," Bhurtel added.

Bhurtel and Airee shared a record partnership for the third wicket for Nepal, who also posted their third highest T20I total and the highest total outside the country. Nepal's 238 runs against the Netherlands in 2021 Tri-Series and 236 runs against Bhutan at the 2019 South Asian Games, both played at the TU cricket grounds, are their highest totals in the shortest format of the game. The 173-run total against Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur was their highest total outside the country.

It was also their third biggest victory by runs, with their first coming against the Netherlands by 142 runs and second by 141 runs against Bhutan. Saturday’s game also marked the highest run victory Nepal made abroad, eclipsing the team's 80-run win over Hong Kong in Bangladesh in 2014.

Player-of-the-match Bhurtel reached his half-century facing 32 deliveries and century in 61 deliveries. The 25-year-old hit one six and 13 fences and also reached his fourth half-century in eight matches.

Airee hit six fences and four sixes before he was bowled by Gurbhupinder Chohan in the 19th over. Lokesh Bam remained unbeaten on six runs.

Philippines bowlers Smith, Podosky and Chohan picked one wicket each.

The Philippines played under pressure in the run chase and lost wickets at regular intervals. Middle order batter Jordan Alegra contributed 27 off 32, the highest of the innings remaining unbeaten. Opener Daniel Smith contributed 20 off 27 while captain Jonathan Hill, who scored 11 runs, was the other batter to score in double digits.

Captain Sandeep Lamichhane was the most successful bowler for Nepal, claiming three wickets in his four-over spell. He conceded nine runs. T20I debutant Gulshan Jha, Jiendra Mukhiya, Abinash Bohara, Kushal Malla and Airee all claimed one wicket each.

"If we had won the toss, our plan was to bat first against the Philippines and also restrict the opponents below 100 runs because the run rate is also important for us. All the credit goes to Bhurtel and Airee for the kind of partnership," captain Lamichhane said after the match, adding that they would give continuity to their winning momentum to achieve their World Cup ambition.