At just 20 years of age, Arjun Kumal has become the fastest player to score 1,000 runs in the Men’s PM Cup, Nepal’s premier one-day tournament.

Kumal, who plays for Gandaki Province, achieved the feat in style on Saturday with a century against Koshi Province at TB Shah Cricket Ground in Birgunj. It was Kumal’s second-ever century in the Men’s PM Cup.

On Saturday, Kumal’s 102 off 141 and skipper Bipin Khatri’s 76 off 86 inspired Gandaki to a 227/7 total.

Kumal and Khatri resurrected Gandaki’s innings that was tottering at 60/6 in 22.5 overs. The two put together a 167-run partnership for the seventh wicket, the biggest partnership for the wicket in the tournament’s history.

Gandaki were off to a shaky start. They lost Gaurav BK, Kumal’s opening partner, for a duck. Except for Kumal, Gandaki’s top-order batters couldn’t perform well. Khatri joined Kumal after Subash Bhandari departed as the sixth wicket—and so began Gandaki’s stunning comeback. They were then at 60/6 in 22.5 overs. They didn’t lose any wicket after that, until Kumal got run out at the last ball of the innings.

Meanwhile, on a high from a batting brilliance from the skipper and the youngster, Gandaki destroyed Koshi’s chase. Though the easternmost province hung in until the allocated 50 overs, they could only manage 188/9 on the board.

Gandaki won by 39 runs and Kumal was adjudged the player of the match. It is the second win for Gandaki in six matches, and they are placed seventh in the points table. With five points, Gandaki are level with fifth-placed Lumbini and sixth-placed Armed Police Force (APF).

APF also registered their second win in six matches after defeating Karnali Province by 10 wickets in the other match on Saturday at the Janakpur-based Ramjanaki Multipurpose Ground.

A four-wicket haul each for Kamal Airee and Avishek Gautam saw APF bundle out Karnali at 107 runs in 36 overs. APF took only 12 overs to overcome the target on the back of Aasif Sheikh’s 65 off 38 and Dipak Bohara’s 42 off 34.

APF put together a dominating performance but it was Kumal who stole the show on Saturday. Kumal now has 1,030 runs in 25 matches at the Men’s PM Cup.

Kumal debuted in the Men’s PM Cup in 2021 and immediately made a mark.

That season, Gandaki faced Tribhuvan Army in their first match. Kumal, who was just 15 then, debuted at the non-striker’s end for Gandaki. He scored 36 off 54 against the departmental side. By all measures, this was a promising performance for a debutant.

Kumal then smashed 35 off 68 in the second match against Koshi and then 46 off 106 against Karnali. The tournament did not end on a high for the teenager as he got out for a duck in Gandaki’s fourth match of the fourth edition against APF. But by then, he had already announced his entry to the Nepali cricket scene in style.

In the next edition in 2022, Kumal, with a maiden half-century, scored 144 runs in four matches.

Kumal, however, missed the sixth edition in 2024 as he was busy donning the national jersey for the U19 team.

But when he returned for the domestic tournament in 2025, he impressed everyone, becoming the highest run scorer of the edition.

With 374 runs in nine games, Kumal was far ahead of national team stalwarts like Kushal Bhurtel (325 runs in 10 games), Dipendra Singh Airee (308 runs in 10 games), and Rohit Kumar Paudel (204 runs in 9 games). It was in this edition that Kumal smashed his maiden century, a 106 off 140, against Madhesh in the team’s last match.

As the eighth edition in 2026 has crossed the halfway stage, Kumal has remained as consistent as ever. He is the only batter with 300+ runs. With the 102 off 141 against Koshi on Saturday, Kumal now has 346 runs in six games. Trailing him is APF’s Aasif Sheikh with 247 runs in six matches.

“I am happy to achieve the feat,” Kumal said after the win over Koshi. “It was my first time playing at TB Shah Cricket Ground.”

It is not only the domestic tournament where Kumal has shone so far.

Kumal was a key player when Nepal qualified for the 2024 U19 World Cup. He scored 185 runs, including a 108 off 112 against Kuwait, in the 2023 Asian Qualifier, where the young Rhinos remained unbeaten to make it to the World Cup.

In Nepal’s first match of the 2024 U19 World Cup, Kumal scored 90 off 104 against New Zealand. Before that, he had also scored 21 off 37 against Pakistan and 91 off 108 against Afghanistan in the 2023 U19 Asia Cup.

Nepal had hosted Ireland-A for a series in March 2024. The visitors played two unofficial T20s with the senior side and three T20s and ODs each against Nepal-A.

Kumal was included in the squad for a three-match one-day series, and he was the leading run scorer for Nepal-A. Kumal scored 111 runs in three matches, following top-placed Stephen Doheny (121 runs in three matches).

Kumal does not have good stats in the shorter format. Roped in by Sudurpashchim Royals in the inaugural Nepal Premier League in 2024, Kumal did not get to play.

In the second edition last year, Kumal was bought by Pokhara Avengers. But he was used in only one match, against Chitwan Rhinos in their last league-stage match. Kumal scored 43 off 53 and showcased what the Avengers missed and that he can bat in T20 as well.

Despite his prodigious talent, Kumal, however, has yet to debut for the senior men’s team. But Kumal appears unworried and unhurried.

Nepali cricket fans following the rise of this generational talent, however, are waiting with bated breath for his senior team debut.

“It is not in my hands to be called into the senior national team,” Kumal told WicketNepal last month. “What I can do is score runs and help my team win.”