It wasn't pretty, but it was perfect for Biratnagar Kings and Sudurpaschim Royals at the TU International Cricket Stadium on Monday. Both Kings and Royals produced a masterclass in a low-total defence, stunning the defending champions Janakpur Bolts and Karnali Yaks, respectively, to extend their winning streak to three matches.

On a pitch that demanded patience, the Kings’ bowlers turned a modest target of 136 runs into a mountain, choking the Bolts’ chase with relentless pressure to stay undefeated in the competition.

Similarly, Sudurpaschim Royals defended 140 runs on the same pitch, preventing their neighbours, Karnali Yaks, from taking the score to three digits.

Kings and Bolts’ trust on spinners

The defending champions won the toss and elected to bowl first. NPL debutant Sangeeth Cooray, the right-arm offbreak bowler from Sri Lanka, opened the spell for the Bolts. And Janakpur, who are led by West Indies great Shivnarine Chanderpaul as the head coach, only used spinners until the 16th over.

Cooray completed his four-over spell and bagged two wickets—of openers George Munsey (10 off 7) and Lokesh Bam (28 off 26)—while Janakpur’s skipper Anil Kumar Sah and Lalit Narayan Rajbanshi stayed economical despite not picking any wickets in their four overs. Sanjay Krishnamurthi from the USA, alongside local Aaditya Mahata, were the two other spinners who bowled two overs each for Janakpur, with only Mahata claiming a wicket—that too of Martin Guptill (13 off 15).

Pacers Kishor Mahato and Rupesh Singh bowled two overs each to end the first innings. Singh was crucial for the Bolts, sending set Basir Ahamad (36 off 35) alongside Narayan Joshi (2 off 4) back to the pavilion. Singh was also behind the run-outs of Shubham Ranjane (37 off 29) and Marchant de Lange (0 off 1).

Ahamad and Ranjane had a 52-run partnership for the fourth wicket to take Biratnagar to a three-digit score, from 55/3 in the ninth over. When Ahamad departed as the fourth wicket, the Kings were at 107 runs in 17.2 overs. A six and two fours in the 19th over, and another six in the first ball of the last over by Ranjane, who then departed in 19.2 overs, saw Biratnagar at 131/6.

In turn, Biratnagar started with the South African right-arm medium pacer de Lange, who gave six runs in the first over, and had Nepali pacer Pratish GC bowl the second over. However, after that, the Kings also utilised their spinners to the fullest, bringing in another medium-pacer, Ranjane, only in the 14th over.

“If it was possible, I would have had spinners bowl all the 20 overs,” Kings’s skipper Sandeep Lamichhane said after the match. “I was even joking with Pratish that he would have to turn to spin.”

Lamichhane stressed that the pitch was favourable for the spinners as the ball was turning well. “Anil used the spinners well,” he said. “I am proud of my team for the fight they showed despite a low total. We were bowling as if we were defending around 120.”

Lamichhane, who was adjudged the Player of the Match, shone for Biratnagar, picking four wickets—Lahiru Milantha (23 off 22), Sah (4 off 14), Rupesh Singh (8 off 11) and Cooray (0 off 1)—as they defended 136. Lamichhane, the right-arm leg spinner, gave only 11 runs in his four overs. He also received a yellow cap for being the leading wickettaker in the tournament with seven wickets in three matches.

Similarly, Surya Tamang, one of Nepal’s best spinners in domestic cricket, picked two wickets, while medium-pacers de Lange and Ranjane claimed one each.

Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton, who has had some great times for Namibia at the TU Stadium, was the only headache for the Kings as he was keeping the Bolts in the chase. However, when Loftie-Eaton tried to steal a single during a wide and take the strike, wicketkeeper Bam found the stumps from a direct throw. Departing at 41 off 30 as the ninth wicket, Loftie-Eaton left the Bolts at 121/9 in 19.1 overs.

And with 15 runs remaining in the last five deliveries, Mahato (2 off 4) and Rajbanshi (5 off 3) faltered as the Bolts were restricted to 126/9 by the Kings, who registered their third straight run by nine runs.

“Unfortunately, Naren did not pick any wickets. But I am proud that he stepped up whenever the team needed him—in the powerplay and after that,” said Lamichhane. When asked how he felt about the Kings’ middle-order’s batting, Lamichhane responded, “They are doing good. Today, the pitch was bowler-friendly, and still, our middle order—Ahamad and Ranjane—did great.”

Royals’ comeback

In the battle of the two western sides, Karnali had an amazing start after electing to bowl first. Skipper Sompal Kami raised the roofs at the TU Stadium after destroying the stumps in the very first ball of the innings, sending back Sudur’s Josh Brown for a royal duck. Further, he prevented Australian hard-hitter Chris Lynn from opening his account in the next five deliveries to ensure a maiden.

Brown was joined by his opening pair Binod Bhandari (11 off 13) in the 5th over after getting struck leg before in the spell of teenage spinning sensation Bipin Sharma. Further, Lynn (18 off 20), Aarif Sheikh (27 off 25) and Ishan Pandey (2 off 2) also could not stay long and contribute sufficiently.

Sudurpaschim’s skipper Dipendra Singh Airee put up a show for quite some time, but he too departed as the seventh wicket in 17.4 overs after scoring 39 off 28 and taking the team to 126. Harmeet Singh (19 off 16) and Scott Kuggeleijn (10 off 8) were the only other batters to score in double figures for the Royals, as the inaugural season’s runners-up posted 139/9 in 20 overs.

Kami bagged three wickets and Nandan Yadav picked two for the Yaks, while Mark Watt, Sharma and Yubraj Khatri claimed one each.

However, despite chasing a low total, Karnali could not prevent Sudurpaschim from bouncing back with the ball.

From losing the first wicket in 1.5 overs as Priyank Panchal (0 off 5) was stumped out in the spell of Airee, the Yaks lost three more wickets—Mark Watt (17 off 10), William Bosisto (3 off 9) and Najibullah Zadran (1 off 4)—in the powerplay. Kami came up the order after regular wickets fell down, but he too departed for a low score of 14 off 16 as the fifth wicket. Watt, who became the first centurion of the season in the Yaks’ nine-wicket win over Lumbini Lions on Saturday, was dropped at 9 off 5, but he could not capitalise on it.

Pawan Sarraf was the highest runscorer for Karnali with 27 off 26, while Gulshan Kumar Jha, who was dropped at 5 off 4, could only manage 13 off 13.

Arjun Gharti, the wicketkeeper batsman, stayed at the crease until the 20th over, keeping the strike to himself as the lower-order—Nandan Yadav, Khatri and Sharma—could not bat. But Gharti could only score 13 off 24 as he got caught out as the last wicket in 19.2 overs with the Yaks bundled out at 94 runs.

“The pitch started favouring the batters since Sudurpaschim had five overs left to bat,” Raju Basnyat, Karnali’s coach, said in the post-match conference. “It was us who could not bat well despite having a low total to chase.”

Further, Basnyat was also not happy with the umpire decision, especially of the caught-behind of Bosisto. “There have been several and regular errors from the umpires in such a big tournament,” he continued. “It is something to be concerned about because a team’s effort and investment goes in vain due to it.”

Airee was adjudged the Player of the Match. After a 39 off 28 with the bat, Airee picked four wickets. Singh and Abinash Bohara took two each, while Hemant Dhami and Kuggeleijn bagged one each.

“We did not do good with the bat, but we bounced back with the ball,” Airee said. “Overall, three in three wins will boost our morale, while we believe it will put pressure on the other opponents as we move forward.”

Upcoming fixtures

While the two winning sides—Biratnagar and Sudurpaschim—are now defending the top two spots in the points table comfortably, the other teams have a tough competition ahead to secure a spot in the playoffs. None of the other six teams have managed more than one win.

Kathmandu Gorkhas will play their fourth match of the season against Lumbini Lions, who have one win in two matches, in the only fixture of Tuesday. Biratnagar Kings will put their winning streak on the line against Chitwan Rhinos on Wednesday. Sudurpaschim Royals will do the same against Lumbini Lions on Thursday, which will be followed by a day/night match between Janakpur Bolts and Pokhara Avengers.

Biratnagar and Sudurpaschim can make their encounter an epic one if they keep winning their other matches. It is because the duo will play their final league-stage match against one another, on December 6.