Winning the toss and electing to field first, Nepal contained the mighty Afghan side for an average 119 runs with Mohammad Shahzad scoring a 34-ball 42 runs.

However, a solid 48-run knock from Binod Bhandari and another hard-fought 30 runs by Gyanendra Malla could not secure the victory at the Yeonhui Cricket Ground in Incheon. Bhandari and Malla were also the only Nepali batsmen to reach the double digit mark.

Fareed Ahmad claimed four wickets for Afghanistan. Earlier, Shakti Gauchan and Sagar Pun had claimed three wickets each for Nepal.