Nepal Women suffered a second straight defeat in the ACC Women’s Asia Cup Rising Stars 2026 as UAE Women posted 189/4 and then held Nepal to 171/5, sealing an 18-run win.
UAE looked in early trouble after losing three wickets inside the powerplay—22/3 in 6 overs—with Nepal's bowlers landing the first punches. Manisha Upadhayay (2/12) and Kabita Kunwar (1/17) were the standouts in that opening phase, keeping UAE pinned down and forcing errors.
But the match turned completely once Esha Oza settled in.
Oza flips the script after 22/3
Oza played a captain's innings of rare brutality, finishing with 125 off 63 balls. She brought up her 50 off 39 and later exploded to reach 100 off 56, dragging UAE from 42/3 at 10 overs to 189/4 by the close.
Her acceleration was backed by Heena Hotchandani (45*), and the pair stitched a game-changing stand that took UAE from a collapse into a commanding total. UAE surged hard at the death too-reaching 150 in 18 overs and cashing in late before Oza was run out on the final ball (19.6).
UAE’s fall of wickets underlined how dominant that recovery was: 10/1, 10/2, 22/3, 189/4.
Nepal’s chase: two fifties, but wickets stall the finish
Chasing 190, Nepal came out with real intent. They raced to 50/1 in the powerplay, and by 12.3 overs they were already at 100, keeping the required rate in reach.
The chase was driven by two standout knocks, Samjhana Khadka 58 (39) with 11 fours and Skipper Puja Mahato 53 (35) with 8 fours and 1 six.
At one stage Nepal were well placed, but the innings pivoted sharply once the set batters were removed by Heena Hotchandani in the same over (Mahato, 15.1 ov), (Khadka, 15.4 ov).
Those two wickets, three balls apart dragged Nepal off their rhythm. Nepal still reached 150 in 18 overs, but UAE’s bowlers controlled the key moments: Suraksha Kotte (2/30) and Heena Hotchandani (2/25) took crucial wickets and closed out the final overs calmly.
Nepal finished 171/5, with Sita Rana Magar 22 (15)* and Roma Thapa 9 (4)* there at the end, but the target stayed just out of reach.
