Nepal pull off stunning upset, beat Afghanistan by five wickets in Asian Games 2026

Nepal sent a warning to the rest of the competition with a stunning five-wicket upset over Afghanistan, chasing down 103 with 14 balls to spare in their Asian Games Group A opener at Korogi Sports Park on Friday. After their spinners strangled Afghanistan for just 102, Nepal recovered from a precarious 31/3 to complete a composed chase. Rohit Paudel, Sundeep Jora and captain Dipendra Singh Airee held their nerve to seal a memorable win.Nepal's chase got off to a disastrous start as they lost both openers cheaply. Afghanistan left-arm seamer Faridoon Dawoodzai dismissed Kushal Bhurtel for a duck before right-arm pacer Abdullah Ahmadzai removed Aasif Sheikh for two.Things got worse when Kushal Malla was run out in the seventh over, leaving Nepal struggling at 31/3 after 6.3 overs.Rohit, Sundeep rescue Nepal before captain finishes jobSundeep and Rohit then steadied the innings with a crucial partnership. The pair kept rotating the strike and punished loose deliveries to keep Nepal's chase alive. Sundeep smashed a four and a six across the ninth and 10th overs before being run out in the 10th, giving Afghanistan renewed hope.Rohit, however, remained composed and found a reliable partner in Dipendra. The duo avoided unnecessary risks, picking up singles and twos as Nepal moved steadily towards the target.With victory within touching distance, Rohit accelerated and hit three fours across the 16th and 17th overs. Dipendra fell in the 18th over with Nepal level with Afghanistan's total, but Gulsan Jha calmly collected a single to complete the chase.Rohit finished unbeaten on 33 off 32 balls, while Sundeep made 34 off 35 and Dipendra contributed 15 off 18.Afghanistan's batting collapses under spin pressureEarlier, Nepal's spinners had put Afghanistan under pressure from the outset. Kushal Bhurtel and Lalit Rajbanshi shared seven wickets between them, preventing Afghanistan's batters from building significant partnerships.Rajbanshi was particularly economical, finishing with three wickets for just 13 runs from his four overs, while Bhurtel claimed four wickets as Afghanistan struggled to score freely. Faisal Shinozada and Najibullah Zadran were Afghanistan's top scorers, both making 30, while Nangeyalia Kharoti contributed 17. But with the rest of the batting lineup unable to accelerate, Afghanistan were restricted to 102.Afghanistan top Group A despite defeatThe defeat leaves Afghanistan with one win and one loss from their two Group A matches. Despite the setback, they remain at the top of the three-team table on net run rate, having completed their league campaign.Nepal, meanwhile, have made the perfect start and will face winless Japan in their final group game. With each team playing two league matches, the top two sides from each group will advance to the quarter-finals.Stay updated with the latest Asian Games 2026 news, check the Asian Games medal tally and complete Asian Games schedule.Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.