In the 2026 Asian Games Men’s Qualifiers, Kushal Bhurtel joined an elite group after scoring his second century in as many matches playing against Malaysia in Group A.
Playing against Malaysia in the event yesterday (June 4), Nepal were put into bat first, and got off to a fast start. They cross the 100-run mark before the end of the seventh over, and had racked up 230 by the end of the 16, having only lost two wickets. Aasif Sheikh played a blistering knock at the top, and ended up with 68 off 24 before he was dismissed.
But it was Aasif’s opening partner Kushal Bhurtel, who dominated the day. Bhurtel reached his half-century in 25 balls and took only 19 more to score his second fifty. He finished with 126 from 54 balls, smashing 14 fours and eight sixes during his innings. Nepal ended with 275 on the board, and sealed a 167-run win after the Malaysian batting line-up folded for 108.
Kushal Bhurtel joins elite list of T20I batters
This was Bhurtel’s second century in as many games, after he scored one in the first group match against China. He joined an elite list of only 10 male T20I batters to achieve the feat. The list includes the likes of Rilee Rossouw, Sanju Samson, Tilak Varma, and Phil Salt.
Malaysia had already qualified for the 2026 Asian Games courtesy of their win against China before their loss to Nepal, and will now face Group B table-toppers Hong Kong in the semi-final, while Nepal will be up against Oman.
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Bhurtel was at his best against China in the tournament opener, where he brought up his half-century in the eighth over and let loose in the ninth. That over, bowled by left-arm spinner Chen Zhou Yue, was hit for six sixes by Bhurtel, most of them powered down the ground. Later in the match, Kushal brought up his century from only 35 balls.
Bhurtel joined an elite list of batters to hit six sixes in a single over in men’s T20Is, joining Yuvraj Singh, Kieron Pollard, Dipendra Singh Airee, Darius Visser, and Manan Bashir.
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