Khadka ton leads Nepal to nine wicket victory

Singapore got off to a good start thanks to opener Surendran Chandramohan, who at one stage was on 30 from 15 balls before being stifled by the introduction of Sandeep Lamichhane. He was eventually dismissed for 35 from 26, bowled by the left-arm spin of T20I debutant Sushan Bhari. The early momentum he generated was carried on by captain Tim David who struck his second T20I fifty in only four games, finishing the innings with a massive six down the ground to end with 64* from 44 balls, and carrying his team to a total of 151/3.

Two of the three wickets to fall were taken by Karan KC, his distinctly sharp right-arm seam accounting for Rohan Rangarajan, feathering behind to a back of a length delivery, and Manpreet Singh, pinned lbw. Nepal's talismanic wrist-spinner Lamichhane went wicketless in his four overs but remained economical, conceding only 18 runs.

In reply, Nepal got off to a poor start as opener Ishan Pandey was trapped plumb in front by a full inswinging deivery from Janak Prakash to leave them 9/1. That was as good as things got for Singapore's bowlers though, as Nepalese skipper Paras Khadka did not allow them the upper hand for long, fighting back with a 29-ball half-century. His assault didn't end there either, and twice he hit leg-spinner Anantha Krishna for back-to-back sixes en route to an unbeaten 106 from 52 balls.

He was well supported by Aarif Sheikh (39*) in an unbroken 145-run partnership which sunk Singapore with four overs to spare. Khadka hit nine sixes in all, along with seven fours, as he became the first player to score a T20I hundred for Nepal. It had quickly became apparent that Singapore needed to dismiss him if they were to stand a chance of defending a slightly below par total, but in the end they were unable to meet that challenge.