Nepal Beat Oman by 10 Runs to Finish Sixth in League 2

A tense finish lifts Nepal above Canada

Nepal defended 280 against Oman at Al Amerat Cricket Ground, Ministry Turf 1, on Monday, October 19, 2026, winning by 10 runs to finish their ICC Men's Cricket World Cup League 2 campaign in sixth place. Dipendra Singh Airee delivered the final over with Oman needing 23, completing a decisive performance that also included 69 runs and two wickets.

The result took Nepal to 30 points from 36 matches, one point above Canada, who finished seventh with 29 from the same number of games. Nepal had entered their final match in seventh place, needing a victory to move back above their nearest rival.

Rohit Paudel made 80, Airee contributed 69 and Dev Khanal scored 57 as Nepal were bowled out for 280. Oman then threatened to take control through Jatinder Singh and Hammad Mirza, whose partnership of 158 brought the hosts within reach of the target of 281.

Nepal broke that stand and took wickets through the closing stages before holding Oman to 270 from their 50 overs. Hasnain Shah finished unbeaten on 40 from 23 balls, but his late burst could not complete the chase.

Sixth place strengthened Nepal's position in their effort to retain One Day International status and kept them on the route towards the 2027 Cricket World Cup through the qualifying playoff. Sandeep Lamichhane said after the match that Nepal had preserved their status, while acknowledging that a formal announcement from the International Cricket Council was still pending.

Paudel and Airee rebuild from 99 for three

Nepal chose to bat after winning the toss, but their innings needed substantial repair when the third wicket fell with 99 runs on the board. Paudel and Airee supplied it, adding 139 for the fourth wicket to take Nepal to 238 for three.

The partnership was described as Nepal's highest for the fourth wicket in ODI cricket. It accounted for almost half of the eventual total: 139 of Nepal's 280 runs, or about 49.6 percent.

Paudel finished with 80 from 81 deliveries, including two fours and two sixes. Those boundaries supplied 20 runs, leaving 60 scored through running between the wickets. His innings gave Nepal a steady scoring base while Airee supplied more frequent boundary shots.

Airee struck three fours and four sixes in his 69 from 62 balls. His boundaries produced 36 runs, slightly more than half his score. Together, the two batters rebuilt the innings without leaving Nepal dependent on a late surge alone.

Khanal had already contributed 57 from 65 balls, with four fours and a six. The three half centuries produced 206 runs between them, nearly 74 percent of Nepal's total. Ishan Pandey added 29 to help establish a score that Oman would have to chase at more than five and a half runs an over.

Oman's bowlers prevent a bigger total

Oman recovered strongly after Nepal reached 238 for three. Nepal lost their remaining seven wickets while adding only 42 runs, finishing all out on the last ball of the 50th over.

Shah Faisal led the response with five wickets for 57 runs from eight overs. Taking five wickets means dismissing half of the opposition's ten available batters, a major contribution in a single ODI innings.

Jay Odedra took three wickets and Samay Shreevastav claimed two, meaning those three bowlers accounted for all ten Nepal dismissals. Their success limited the damage after the long Paudel and Airee partnership.

Basir Ahmed still provided a valuable late contribution, making 17 from seven balls with two fours and a six. Fourteen of those runs came in boundaries. In a match eventually decided by ten runs, that brief innings helped give Nepal a little more room to defend.

Nepal's total required Oman to score 281 to win. The hosts finished on 270, eleven runs below the winning target but ten behind Nepal's score, which is why the official victory margin was ten runs.

Singh and Mirza put Oman in control

Oman lost their first wicket at 32 before Jatinder Singh and Hammad Mirza built the largest partnership of the match. Their stand of 158 for the second wicket carried the hosts to 190 and forced Nepal to work for another opening.

Singh scored 89 from 114 deliveries, hitting seven fours and a six. Mirza made 87 from 97 balls, including five fours and three sixes. Between them, they contributed 176 runs, about 65 percent of Oman's final total.

Mirza scored more quickly, while Singh occupied the crease for longer. Their partnership was 19 runs larger than the stand between Paudel and Airee, giving Oman a strong platform even though neither batter reached a century.

Nepal finally broke the partnership at 190 and took another wicket 13 runs later. Oman then moved through 203 for three and 206 for four before Vinayak Shukla, who made 13, was dismissed at 224 for five.

Sanju Sajiv was subsequently run out, leaving Oman at 232 for six. That sequence changed the chase: after losing only one wicket in reaching 190, Oman lost five more while adding 42 runs. Shah was left to supply the rapid scoring needed at the end.

Airee survives a dangerous final over

Shah kept Oman in contention with an unbeaten 40 from just 23 deliveries. Hasnain Ul Wahab also contributed 15, but Nepal had pushed the required scoring rate high enough to make every remaining ball matter.

Oman needed 23 runs from the final six deliveries when Airee took the ball. Shah began with two runs, then struck consecutive fours. Ten runs from the first three balls brought the requirement down to 13 from three, leaving the result within reach.

Shah took two from the fourth delivery, leaving Oman needing 11 from the last two balls. Airee then bowled a dot ball, a delivery from which no run is scored. The final ball also produced no run, ending the chase at 270.

Airee conceded 12 in the over, exactly enough to preserve a ten run margin. His figures were two wickets for 60 from ten overs, alongside his earlier contribution with the bat, and he received the Player of the Match award.

Lalit Rajbanshi took two wickets for 53 from eight overs. Lamichhane and Nandan Yadav claimed one wicket each. Nepal's bowling response depended on both dismissing established batters and restricting runs when Oman still had a chance to finish the chase.

The pressure behind the comeback

Airee said after the match that the pitch had been good for batting during his partnership with Paudel. He explained that Oman's strong partnership had prolonged the chase and increased the pressure on Nepal.

His assessment matched the shape of the game. Nepal's 280 had given their bowlers something substantial to defend, but Singh and Mirza stayed together long enough to make the target manageable. Breaking their partnership became the turning point.

Lamichhane also praised the two Oman batters, saying they had given Nepal few opportunities. He said Nepal continued applying pressure even when the required rate was around seven runs an over, encouraging the hosts to take extra risks.

Lamichhane credited Khanal, Paudel, Airee and Ahmed for their batting contributions and thanked the bowling group. He also expressed gratitude to supporters for staying with Nepal through the changing fortunes of the campaign.

His comments about ODI status captured the relief after the result. Speaking after the match, Lamichhane said, in translation:

We are happy, we have been able to retain ODI status by finishing sixth. However, the ICC has not announced it yet.

How the race with Canada was settled

Nepal's final series produced three wins from four matches. They beat Canada and Oman in their first two games, lost to Canada on Saturday, then defeated Oman again on Monday.

The opening victory came through Paudel's century against Canada on October 11. He scored 101 from 127 balls as Nepal defended 235 to win by 24 runs. That result moved Nepal from 24 points after 32 matches to 26 after 33, temporarily lifting them above Canada.

The final stages of the standings race unfolded as follows:

• October 11: Nepal beat Canada by 24 runs, moving to 26 points from 33 matches.
• Next match: Nepal defeated Oman to reach 28 points.
• Saturday, October 17: Canada beat Nepal, finishing with 29 points from 36 matches and leaving Nepal on 28 from 35.
• Monday, October 19: Nepal beat Oman by ten runs, ending with 30 points from 36 matches and reclaiming sixth place.

Nepal's completed campaign comprised 14 wins, 20 defeats and two matches in which points were shared. Their 14 victories supplied 28 points, with the other two points bringing the total to 30.

Canada had no matches left when Nepal faced Oman for the final time. Nepal therefore knew the immediate task: win and finish one point ahead of Canada. Monday's result settled that contest.

What sixth place means for Nepal

League 2 forms part of the qualification route to the 2027 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup. Nepal finished outside the top four, so their route continues through the World Cup Qualifier Playoff rather than directly to the main qualifying tournament.

The playoff gives teams another opportunity to advance towards the World Cup. Nepal still need further results to reach the global tournament; sixth place completes this league campaign, not the qualification journey.

ODI status is a separate issue. It recognises a national team's eligibility to play matches classified as One Day Internationals, the format in which each side usually has up to 50 overs. Preserving that standing was a central concern in Nepal's contest with Canada.

The Asian Cricket Council said Nepal had secured that status, and Lamichhane expressed the same understanding after the match. His acknowledgement that the ICC announcement was pending leaves formal confirmation as the next step.

Nepal finished the league with a narrow advantage in the table and a narrow victory on the field. Paudel and Airee's recovery with the bat, the wickets after Oman's stand of 158, and Airee's final two scoreless deliveries together delivered the result they needed.

Key Points

• Nepal beat Oman by ten runs at Al Amerat on October 19, defending 280 and restricting the hosts to 270.
• Nepal finished sixth with 30 points from 36 matches, ahead of Canada on 29.
• Rohit Paudel scored 80, Dipendra Singh Airee made 69 and Dev Khanal contributed 57.
• Paudel and Airee added 139 for the fourth wicket after Nepal slipped to 99 for three.
• Jatinder Singh scored 89 and Hammad Mirza made 87 in Oman's chase, sharing a partnership of 158.
• Airee defended 23 in the final over and was named Player of the Match.
• Nepal's World Cup route continues through the qualifying playoff; formal ICC confirmation of ODI status was still pending after the match.