Tribhuvan Army Club registered a sensational two-wicket victory on the penultimate ball over Nepal Police Club on Friday, chasing the biggest target of the Prime Minister Cup One-Day National Cricket Tournament. The win sets up a showdown with Nepal Armed Police Force (APF) Club at the TU cricket ground in Kirtipur on Saturday.

Army scored 309-8 in 49.5 overs in their run chase after Police, who were sent in to bat first, amassed a challenging total of 304-4 on the back of a century by captain Dipendra Singh Airee in the second semi-final.

Army will meet APF in the final in a rematch of the opening game which saw the latter register a 56-run victory. APF, the only unbeaten team in the tournament, registered a seven-wicket win over Madhesh Province in the first semi-final on Thursday.

A match-winning innings from middle-order batter Pulami Magar who contributed a 37-ball 43 set up Army’s win. While Army seemingly looked close to victory and required 11 runs off the last two overs, pacer Karan KC dismissed Bikram Sob and Sushan Bhari in the 49th over, conceding just three runs, to leave the match hanging in the balance.

But Pulami alone scored 11 runs in the last over, hitting a boundary off Airee off the second ball and hitting the winning six off the penultimate ball. The man-of-the-match Pulami hit three fours and two sixes in his fine knock.

Army’s Rohit Paudel and opener Hari Chauhan also played crucial roles in the victory, sharing a 135-run partnership for the third wicket, before the latter was dismissed. Paudel hit 89 off 87 balls, the highest of the innings, with nine hits to the fence. He was caught by Karan KC off the bowling of Rashid Khan.

Chauhan scored a 92-ball 75 that included eight boundaries and a six before he was clean-bowled by Lalit Rajbanshi. Captain Binod Bhandari contributed 32 off 30 balls, which comprised three boundaries and two sixes. He was trapped leg before by pacer KC.

Bikram Sob was another remarkable contributor scoring a quickfire 18-ball 30 before Sunil Dhamala caught him off KC. He hit three boundaries and two sixes.

Police pacer KC was the pick of the bowling, claiming six wickets alone in his 10-over spell conceding 52 runs. Rashid Khan and Lalit Rajbanshi took a wicket each.

Police captain Dipendra Singh Airee’s 140 runs off 125 balls, his second century of the tournament, went in vain. He struck 11 boundaries and five sixes before he was caught by Bhim Sharki off Bikram Sob. Airee also shared a 212-run partnership for the fourth wicket with Aarif Sheikh who remained unbeaten on 91 runs off 109 balls. Sheikh hit eight boundaries and two sixes. Openers Kushal Bhurtel contributed 31 off 32 balls while Sunil Dhamala scored a 14-ball 13.

Army bowler Bikram Sob took a three-wicket haul in his 10-over spell, conceding 66 runs.