West Indies vs Nepal, 9th Match, Group A at Harare, CWC Qualifier, Jun 22 2023 - Ball by Ball Commentary

Thanks all for your company and feedback. Stick around for Danyal Rasool's report. But from me, cheerio!

Rohit Paudel, Nepal Captain: I think in early stages, we bowled really well but we dropped a few catches...we could have done better in the field. Usually we field well but today we missed a few opportunities. Later both Pooran and Hope batted really well so credit to them also. I think we could have done better by using the pace, Aarif and Gulshan played really well. We look forward to tackle them and short balls. (on biggest learning) playing against Test playing nations have taught me a lot. We have to be up to the mark in every game.

Shai Hope, West Indies Captain and Player of the Match: I believe the rhythm was a bit off. I am just happy that I came good for the team. We were put on the backfoot there...happy to get the team over the line today. The key was absorbing as much pressure as possible and then find a way to transfer that pressure in the back end. Pooran made it a lot easier for me. The aim was to take it as deep as possible give us the best chance towards the end. I don't think I hit the targets where I wanted to but happy to just bat as deep as I possibly could there. The team really needed me. They bowled well, must commend their bowlers, especially their spinners, they stuck to their task well. We batted well in that period to overcome their spin threat. There's obviously room for improvement, so we need to make sure we are ticking those boxes going into the next game.

We saw a significant mismatch in both teams' bowling. West Indies, the big boys, were quite clinical with the ball and tested Nepal with the short-pitch barrage, bouncing out many batters. Heartbreaking for Nepal, of course, but they yet again played with a lot of passion and valour. However, they struggled against the likes of Holder, Joseph, Mayers and then later Akeal spun a web around the batters. It's a massive learning curve for them playing against an experienced side and they almost batted through 50 overs. They were able to peg West Indies back with the ball in the bowling powerplay after winning the toss and got early wickets too but then Nicholas Pooran and Shai Hope took control of the game and forged a colossal 216-run partnership.

Elina Poudel: "The past few years of busy cricket engagements with associate nations have propelled Nepal's cricket to its current level. Now, imagine the potential if we were to have a few more years of cricketing opportunities against test-playing nations."

Bishal Gautam: "Well played boys, hold your head high and let's try to win against Ned to go for Super Six. Let's gain much more experience and leverage that to get a fantastic run of Asia Cup as well." I foresee Nepal becoming a force to reckon with in next few years. They have got the potential, hunger and a talented group of players to cause trouble to the heavyweights

Overrate penalty has been applied, one fielder from outside the ring has to come in

bimal bista: "Nepali batters mostly fail to convert 30s 40s to half-century and 60s 70s to century."

Prem Karki: "I will take these matches against the West Indies and Zimbabwe as valuable practice fixtures before our upcoming encounters with India and Pakistan in a couple of months."

Agni: "@sawin I agree with your statement. CAN (cricket association of Nepal) should focus to start multi day turnament. It will be very innitiative step if CAN start 3 or 4 day turnament using 10 teams (7 provigences and 3 division teams) on round robin basis. It will improve skills on all three department"

Sabin: "You can't blame Nepali batters for this..All of these guys are facing such pace attack for the first time in their career. They have played spinners relatively well. Need more matches against full members."

Dinesh Rimal: "I would like to express my sincere appreciation and admiration for the remarkable progress of Nepali cricket in recent years. It is truly inspiring to witness the growth and development of the sport in Nepal, which has captured the attention of cricket enthusiasts worldwide. The strides made by the Nepali cricket team are testament to their dedication, perseverance, and undeniable talent."