Janakpur Bolts clinched the title of the inaugural edition of the Nepal Premier League T20 cricket tournament after they defeated Sudurpaschim Royals by five wickets in a high-octane final at the TU Cricket Ground in Kirtipur on Saturday.

United States wicketkeeper-batter Lahiru Milantha scored a scintillating 87 runs off 49 balls, helping Janakpur successfully chase down a challenging target of 185 runs with four balls to spare. Milantha’s explosive innings featured nine boundaries and four sixes.

Milantha gave Janakpur a solid start with a 73-run opening stand with Aasif Sheikh.

Aasif made a brisk 33 runs off 19 balls before falling to Saif Zaib in the 6.6 overs.

Mohammad Mohsin followed soon after, bowled by Ishan Pandey in the 9.6 overs.

Milantha was dropped in the first ball of the 12th over by Dipendra Singh Airee and it proved costly as the American capitalised by stitching together another vital 61-run partnership with Harsh Thaker.

Scott Kuggelijin finally caught-and-bowled Milantha in the 15.1 overs but Thaker’s unbeaten 30 off 24 ensured Janakpur crossed the finish line.

“Absolutely amazing,” player of the match Milantha said after the match. “I am so happy… I cannot describe it. These guys are amazing. Credit goes to them. Both teams played very good cricket. But we came on top.”

Earlier, Sudurpaschim opted to bat first and posted an imposing 184-9, thanks to a commanding 117-run partnership of openers Zaib and Binod Bhandari.

Zaib cracked 69 runs off 43 balls, laced with eight fours and two sixes, while Bhandari contributed a steady 41 runs off 31 balls.

However, the middle-order collapse stymied their momentum. Kishore Mahato (3-25) triggered the slump by dismissing Zaib in the 12th over, followed by Lalit Rajbanshi removing Bhandari.

Mohsin then inflicted further damage with the key wickets of Harmeet Singh (14), Dipendra Singh Airee (9) and Aarif Sheikh (1).

Kuggeleijn added 13 off 10 before falling to Mahato, who then dismissed Naresh Budayair (8).

“Credit goes to the team members,” Aasif said after the victory. “We saw the wicket and I thought it was going to be a high-scoring match… And anything below 180 would be a good score to chase. We were confident enough that we could chase down the target… Great to see the top order stepping up today and finishing off in style.”

The victory also helped Janakpur exact a sweet revenge for their earlier defeats to Sudurpaschim in the group stage and Qualifier 1.

Champions Janakpur won a purse of Rs11 million, while runners-up Sudurpaschim pocketed Rs5.1 million.

Karnali Yaks and Chitwan Rhinos, finishing third and fourth respectively, won Rs2.5 million and Rs1.5 million, respectively.

Sudurpaschim skipper Airee was named the Electric Player of the Tournament, earning him an Omoda car worth Rs6.2 million. Airee scored 227 runs, took eight wickets, held three catches and affected seven run-outs in the tournament.

“This tournament was good overall,” Airee said. “I would like to thank all our supporters for making the NPL a success.”

On the defeat, Airee said: “Everyone played well. Our team played well. Janakpur’s Milantha and Aasif were good. Our bowling did not go as expected… We could not win but will do it next time.”

Zaib, who scored 275 runs and 12 wickets, was named the player of the tournament.

“We were looking for anything past 150 but we got quite a good start,” Zaib said. “We were hoping we had given enough. But Lahiru played an unbelievable innings… Credit to the Bolts.”

Janakpur’s Lalit Rajbanshi won the best bowler award for taking 17 wickets. He won an Ultraviolette bike.

James Neesham was declared the energetic player of the tournament and Karnali Yaks’ Bipin Sharma was adjudged an emerging player.

Lumbini Lions won the fair play award.