Nepal’s Under-19 cricket team crashed out of the ACC U-19 Asia Cup on Wednesday after losing to Afghanistan by six wickets in Dubai, suffering their third consecutive defeat in Group B.

Batting first after losing the toss, Nepal were bowled out for 124 in 46.4 overs. Dilsad Ali top-scored with 32 runs off 68 balls, while Chandan Ram contributed 27, Abhishek Tiwari 20, and Roshan Bishwakarma 12. No other batsmen reached double figures.

Zaitullah Shaheen was Afghanistan’s most successful bowler, taking three wickets for 19 runs, while Abdul Aziz, Nooristani Omarzai, and Wahidullah Zadran took two wickets each.

In reply, Afghanistan reached the target at the loss of four wickets in 26.5 overs, with 139 balls to spare. Uzairullah Niazai anchored the innings with a match-winning 61 off 59 balls, including seven fours and two sixes. Osman Sadat added 28 and Mahboob Khan 11 not out. Nepal’s Abhishek Tiwari took two wickets, and Chandan Ram and Bipin Sharma claimed one each.

The defeat confirmed Nepal’s elimination from the tournament, with Sri Lanka topping Group B and Bangladesh finishing second to advance to the semi-finals. From Group A, India and Pakistan progressed as the group topper and runner-up, respectively.

Nepal had earlier lost to Bangladesh by seven wickets and Sri Lanka by eight wickets.