Nepal storms through to semifinals as Group A topper after dominant win over Bhutan

Nepal has reached the semifinal of the ACC Men's U16 East Zone Cup 2025 as the table topper of Group A. They thrashed Bhutan U16 by a huge margin of 298 runs, extending their winning streak to four matches and finishing on top of the table with 8 points.

Nepal started the tournament with wins over Singapore, Japan, and Indonesia. They will now face Malaysia, the runner-up from Group B, in the semifinal.

Opting to bat first, Nepal posted massive 358/5 in 50 overs. They had a shaky start, losing both openers cheaply. However, the early jitters were quickly forgotten as Raunak Shrivastav and Shiwansh Bajgain steadied the innings with a crucial 91-run partnership for the third wicket. Shiwansh looked in fine touch, scoring a fluent 54 before being run out.

Raunak, however, was in a league of his own. Showing maturity beyond his age, the young batter anchored the innings while maintaining an aggressive tempo. He scored 168 off just 132 deliveries with 16 boundaries and 6 sixes. Raunak who was dismissed for 88 in the previous game, capitalized against Bhutan.

He found a reliable partner in Joy Thapa, and together they piled on the runs. The duo added a mammoth 170-run stand, putting Nepal in a dominant position. Joy played a composed innings, remaining unbeaten on 61, while Sugam Budhathoki chipped in with a useful 35 in the middle overs.

In response, Bhutan was bowled out for 60 runs in 32.4 overs. They were 21/0 at one point, but quickly collapsed to 24/5. Captain Bipin Sharma took control of the match, claiming three wickets in the 10th over.

The extras conceded by Nepal (22) ended up being Bhutan's highest scorer. Tshezang Dawa made 14, and Ugyen Kelzang Chophel scored 10. Apart from them, no other batsman reached double digits. Bhutan’s last batsman was unable to bat, and the match ended after the ninth wicket fell.

For Nepal, Bipin Sharma produced a mindblowing spell (10-6-7-4), and grabbed four wickets. Suyog Bhattarai and Sachin Bhatta grabbed two each with Sachin finishing with a figure of (8-5-15-2).

For Nepal, Bipin Sharma delivered a brilliant spell, finishing with 10 overs, 6 maidens, and 4 wickets for just 7 runs. Suyog Bhattarai and Sachin Bhatta each took two wickets, with Sachin finishing with figures of 8 overs, 5 maidens, and 15 runs for 2 wickets.