Mumbai, Feb 17 (NationPress) Nepal's captain Rohit Paudel praised the valuable insights gained from their narrow loss against England and the impressive composure displayed by his bowlers and batters in the critical final overs, leading to their historic victory in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup after 12 attempts. This win came in the final league match against Scotland at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Tuesday.

Nepal kicked off the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 with a commendable performance despite a close loss to England. However, subsequent defeats to West Indies and Italy were disheartening. The triumph over Scotland not only rejuvenated their spirits but will also be cherished for years to come.

Facing a daunting situation as Scotland appeared set at 130/1 in the 15th over, aiming for a score near 200, Nepal mounted a valiant comeback. Sompal Kami delivered an exceptional performance with figures of 3-25, while Nandan Yadav contributed with 2-34, successfully limiting Scotland to 170/7 after opting to bowl first.

Nepal commenced their chase confidently, reaching 74 without losing a wicket. However, a flurry of wickets from Michael Leask (3-30) left them struggling at 98/3 as they entered the final six overs. Dipendra Singh Airee played a pivotal role, scoring 50 not out off just 23 balls, and alongside Gulshan Jha, who added 24 not out from 17 balls, they guided Nepal to 171/3 in 19.2 overs, clinching a seven-wicket victory.

Paudel expressed the significance of this win for him personally, marking his second T20 World Cup as captain. He stated, "This victory is immensely important for me, especially as we won our first match in the last game of the league stage. Dipendra was instrumental in our success," during the post-match presentation.

He commended Sompal Kami and Airee for their stellar performances and acknowledged the enthusiastic support from the fans, who rallied behind the team following their loss to England.

“After our match against England, our fans showed unwavering support, booking tickets for the last game,” he added.

Paudel credited his bowlers for their tactical execution in restricting Scotland to 170/7, highlighting their exceptional death bowling. "We focused more on dot balls than on taking wickets, which was crucial in slowing down the scoring,” he mentioned.

He acknowledged that the batting did not meet their expectations but expressed confidence in Dipendra Airee and Gulshan Jha. "This isn’t how we envisioned our play, but Dipendra and Gulshan secured the win for us. Dipendra truly deserves the Man of the Match award for his remarkable talent. We maintained our composure, both bowlers and batters. We learned valuable lessons from the game against England.

In conclusion, Paudel reflected, "We aimed to replicate the performance against England and Scotland. The match against Italy was far from our best, and we will strive to improve from here."