November 5, 2026: Lumbini Lions secured a 16-run victory over Janakpur Bolts in the 14th match of the Nepal Premier League (NPL) 2026 at the Tribhuvan University Cricket Ground in Kirtipur on Thursday.
Batting first after Janakpur won the toss and elected to bowl, Lumbini posted 149/8 in 20 overs. Captain Rohit Paudel led the innings with 34 runs, while Niroshan Dickwella and Dilip Nath made useful contributions.
Janakpur struggled to maintain momentum during the chase and finished on 133/8, falling 16 runs short of the target. Sher Malla played a key role in Lumbini's defence, taking two wickets for 29 runs in his four overs.
Lumbini Recover After Early Setback
Lumbini suffered an immediate blow when D'Arcy Short was dismissed for a duck off the very first ball by Lalit Rajbanshi. Aasif Sheikh and Niroshan Dickwella steadied the innings with a 43-run partnership for the second wicket. Sheikh scored 21 before being dismissed lbw by Harmeet Singh, while Dickwella contributed 27.
Dilip Nath added momentum with a quick 25 off 16 balls, including two fours and two sixes. Paudel then anchored the innings with 34 off 30 deliveries before falling to Abhisekh Tiwari.
Lumbini reached 100 in 15.2 overs and were 125/5 after 18 overs. They managed another 24 runs in the final two overs to finish with 149/8.
Sher Malla's Spell Stops Janakpur's Chase
Janakpur began their chase steadily, reaching 42/1 in the seventh over. However, the Bolts lost wickets at regular intervals and found themselves under pressure. Captain Harmeet Singh kept the chase alive with an aggressive 33 off 20 balls. Alongside Aaditya Mahata, he helped bring the equation down to 42 runs required from the final 15 deliveries.
The partnership was broken when Sher Malla bowled Harmeet in the 18th over, shifting the momentum back in Lumbini's favour. Malla finished with figures of 2/29 from four overs.
Mahata remained unbeaten on 30 off 24 balls, including four sixes, but Janakpur could not make up the remaining runs and ended their innings at 133/8.
Tilak Bhandari also claimed two wickets for Lumbini, while Ruben Trumpelmann finished with 1/30.
Lumbini Hold Their Nerve
Lumbini's total of 149 proved enough as their bowlers kept Janakpur from building the partnerships needed to complete the chase. Malla's dismissal of Harmeet at a crucial stage proved particularly important in securing the 16-run victory.