Nepal made a disastrous debut in the ICC U-19 Women’s T20 World Cup as they lost to Bangladesh by five wickets in their Group D match at the YSD-UKM Cricket Oval in Bangi, Malaysia on Saturday.

Sent to bat first after losing the toss, Nepal’s batting lineup faltered against a dominant Bangladeshi bowling attack and were all out for a low 52 in 18.2 overs.

Sana Praveen top scored for Nepal with 19 runs off 32 balls, while Seemana KC’s 10 off 16 balls provided the second-highest score of the innings.

The remaining eight Nepali batters offered no resistance failing to even reach double-digits, with five of them including captain Puja Mahato being run out in a chaotic innings.

Jannatul Maoua led the Bangladeshi bowling effort with impressive figures of 2-11 from her four overs which included the key wicket of Praveen.

Nishita Akter Nishi, Fahomida Choya, Nisa Akter Soba chipped in with one wicket apiece to keep Nepal on the back foot.

In response, Nepal shook the Bangladesh top order. Rachana Chaudhary removed opener Sumaiya Akther Suborna for four in the first over, while Riya Sharma accounted for Fahomida Choya’s wicket in the next over. A run-out of Juairiya Ferdous in the 2.4 that left Bangladesh reeling at 11-3.

But Sadia Islam’s crucial 16-run knock off 24 balls, supported by captain Sumaiya Akter’s 12 off 24 steadied Bangladesh innings.

Puja Mahato took the wicket of Islam in the 7.5 overs and KC had skipper Sumaiya caught by Mahato in the 10.2 overs to take two more wickets.

However, Afia Ashima Era played 9 not out off 13 and Maoua made 5 not out off 9 to complete the chase in 13.2 overs.

Nepal’s next match is against Scotland, who also made a poor start to their World Cup campaign, losing to Australia by nine wickets.

Australia showed their dominance by bowling out Scotland for 48 runs after electing to bowl first, with Caoimhe Bray starring with the ball taking 3-1 in her magical 3.1 over spell.

Eleanor Larosa also shone with the ball with 3-7 in her three-over spell, while Hasrat Gill took 2-10 from two overs.

Scotland’s Emma Walsingham (12 off 21) and Charlotte Nevard (10 off 14) were the only batters to score in double digits.

In reply, Opener Kate Pelle made 29 not out off 18 and Ines McKeon scored 12 off 20 to help Australia comfortably chase down the target in just 6.4 overs.

The Group B matches at Johor Cricket Academy Oval in Johor and Group C matches at Borneo Cricket Ground in Sarawak were affected by rain.

In Group B, England vs Ireland shared a point each after their match yielded no result following rain.

England had posted an imposing 144 from their 20 overs and reduced Ireland to two quick wickets before rain intervened, forcing the match to end in a draw.

The Pakistan vs United States game was abandoned without a single ball being bowled due to persistent rain.

Rain also disrupted the Group C match between Samoa vs Nigeria, leading to the match being called off.

Meanwhile, South Africa defeated New Zealand by 22 runs in a rain-shortened 11-overs-a-side match.