Nepal’s Kushal Malla, the youngest batter to score a men’s ODI fifty, put in an all-round show to lead his team, Tribhuwan Army Club, to a win in a low-scoring thriller in the Men’s PM Cup.
Playing against Lumbini Province at Janakpur in the Men’s PM Cup, Nepal’s premier domestic one-day cricket tournament, Malla was introduced into the attack in the 25th over of the innings and struck immediately, dismissing Dev Khanal for 23. By his sixth over, he had taken four wickets, as Lumbini fell from 88-3 to 126-7 in the span of 11 overs.
Malla eventually ended his spell with figures of 4-26 in eight overs, with one maiden, as Lumbini were bowled out for 138 in 39.2 overs.
Kushal Malla top scores with the bat in one-wicket win
With the bat, Tribhuwan lost regular wickets, and were 30-3 inside five overs, with Malla batting at No.4. Along with skipper Arjun Saud, Malla steadied the ship, taking the team to 99 before he fell for a 36-ball 41, with seven fours and one six. His dismissal, however, sparked another collapse, as Tribhuwan lost their next three wickets for 13 runs, leaving them at 112-6.
Imran Sheikh and Basir Ahamad took the team to 134, nearly over the line. What followed was unexpected, as Tribhuwan lost three wickets for no score, slipping to 134-9. A first-ball four from No.11 Aakash Chand eventually sealed a tight win.
The 22-year-old Malla was the only batter to cross 30 in the match, with his innings helping the team get close. The left-hander had created headlines when he made his T20I debut at 15 years and 206 days in 2019. A few months later, in an ODI against the USA, he brought up his maiden half-century, becoming the youngest ever to score a fifty in men’s ODIs, at 15 years and 340 days.
Earlier in the competition, Malla had scored "one of the great PM Cup knocks", smashing 90* off 58 balls as Tribhuwan chased 209 to beat Bagmati with one ball to spare.
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