Canada secured a four-wicket victory over Nepal in the fourth match of the Canada T20 Tri-Series, held at the Maple Leaf North-West Ground, King City, Canada.

The hosts chased the 140-run target set by the Rhinos with three balls to spare.

Canada faced an early setback when Navneet Dhaliwal was bowled by Lalit Rajbanshi for 12 off 16 balls in the fifth over.

Harsh Thaker, who followed, scored 11 off 9 deliveries before falling to Rajbanshi, leaving Canada at 45-2 in the eighth over. Captain Nicholas Kirton provided some stability, blasting 26 from just 14 balls, including two sixes, before being dismissed by Sompal Kami.

Canada’s innings faltered again when Dilpreet Bajwa, who had anchored the innings with 25 off 29 balls, was run out in the 12th over.

When Shreyas Movva was stumped by Aasif Sheikh off Sandeep Lamichhane shortly after, and Dilon Heyliger fell for a duck two balls later, Canada were in trouble at 90-6 in the 15th over.

However, the lower order provided the rescue. Ravinderpal Singh and Saad Bin Zafar forged a crucial unbeaten partnership to guide Canada to victory. Zafar was instrumental, scoring a quickfire 33 not out off 18 balls, with four boundaries and a six, while Ravinderpal contributed an unbeaten 20 runs from 21 balls.

Nepal’s bowling attack was led by Sandeep Lamichhane and Lalit Rajbanshi, who took two wickets each, with Rajbanshi delivering a particularly economical spell of 4-0-20-2.

Earlier, Nepal, having been put into bat, posted a total of 139-6 in their 20 overs. Opener Anil Sah was the standout performer for Nepal, scoring 41 off 30 balls with four boundaries and three sixes. He provided a solid start alongside Aasif Sheikh, who made 30 from 30 deliveries. The pair shared a 70-run opening partnership before Sah was dismissed by Harsh Thaker in the 10th over.

Nepal’s middle order struggled to capitalise on the strong start. Captain Rohit Paudel was dismissed cheaply for 4, caught by Ravinderpal Singh off Thaker. Kushal Malla and Kushal Bhurtel also failed to make an impact, with Malla scoring 4 off 12 balls and Bhurtel managing 13 off 15 before losing their wickets.

However, Gulsan Jha provided a late surge, remaining unbeaten on 23 off 16 balls, including two sixes. He was supported by Dipendra Singh Airee, who chipped in with 12 off 9 deliveries, and Karan KC, who blasted 8 off just 2 balls in the final over.

Canada’s bowlers delivered an impressive performance that restricted Nepal’s scoring. Saad Bin Zafar was particularly effective, conceding just 13 runs from his four overs while picking up the wicket of Aasif Sheikh. Harsh Thaker was the leading wicket-taker with 2-17 from his four overs, while Parveen Kumar and Akhil Kumar claimed a wicket each.