Nepal’s hopes of progressing into the Super Six stage of the ICC U-19 Women’s T20 World Cup were dealt a hammer blow after they lost to Scotland by one wicket in a thrilling Group D match at the USD-UKM Cricket Oval in Bangi, Malaysia on Monday.

A second straight loss leaves Nepal at the bottom of the four-team group with no points. Debutants Nepal had opened their World Cup with a five-wicket loss to Bangladesh on Saturday.

The outcome means Nepal’s chances of advancing to the next round is all but extinguished unless they can produce an extraordinary upset against heavyweights Australia in their final group match and other results align in their favour.

Australia have already sealed their spot in the Super Six after their two wicket victory over Bangladesh earlier in the day earned them four points from two matches. The Aussies had opened their World Cup with a comprehensive nine wicket win over Scotland.

The 16-team tournament is divided into four groups of four teams each. The top three teams from each group will progress to two Super Six groups, where they will carry over their points picked up against other qualifying teams. The top two teams in each Super Six pool will advance into the semi-finals, with the final scheduled for February 2.

Nepal’s bid to stay alive in the Super Six contest was undone by a clinical performance from Scotland’s Maisie Maceira, whose devastating spell of 5-15 in 3.5 overs skittled Nepal out for a paltry 73 in 18.5 overs after they opted to bat first.

Maceira’s spell also included the key wicket of skipper Puja Mahato, who was the lone bright spot with the bat, top scoring with 27 runs off 43 deliveries.

Apart from Mahato and Sabitri Dhami (10 off 11 runs), none of the Nepali batters reached double figures.

Ammy Daldie and Nayma Sheikh picked two wickets apiece, while Kirsty McColl accounted for one.

In reply, Nepal presented a strong challenge to Scotland in their defence of their modest total that saw eight batter dismissed without touching double digit figures.

Mahato struck early with a wicket before Nepal did more damage with three more runouts, leaving Scotland reeling at 37-6 in the 14th over.

However, Pippa Sproul anchored Scotland’s chase with a crucial 35 off 47 balls.

Rachana Chaudhary took 2-13 including the wicket of Sproul, while Seemana KC chipped in two more wickets to reduce Scotland to 58-9 in the 17th over.

But Gabriella Fontenla’s unbeaten 12 off nine balls and McColl’s six not out off four balls guided Scotland to victory at 74-9 in 18.4 overs.

The victory lifted Scotland to third position with two points, keeping their Super Six hopes alive.

South Africa also progressed to Super Six from Group C after they thrashed Samoa by 10 wickets to make it two wins in two matches.

It was a memorable day for Nigeria as they created history by beating New Zealand by two runs for their maiden win at their first-ever Women’s U-19 World Cup.

For New Zealand, it was another tough day as they suffered a second successive loss of the tournament. They were beaten by South Africa by 22 runs in their opening game. The Kiwis, however, still have a chance to progress and need to beat Samoa in their last group fixture.

In Group B, the United States beat Ireland by nine wickets, while England overcame Pakistan by six wickets.