Nepal Almost Eliminate Reigning Silver Medalist Afghanistan In Asian Games

Nepal defeat Afghanistan in Asian Games 2026. PC- XOn Friday, Nepal pulled off a sensational five-wicket victory over the reigning Asian Games silver medalist Afghanistan in Nisshin. As the Nepalese team opened their campaign on a high, they have defeated the Afghanistan side of the Asian Games 2026, who have won as many matches as they have lost in the tournament.Meanwhile, if Nepal could defeat Japan in the next outing, they will book a date with Sri Lanka in the quarter-final of the Games. Kushal Bhurtel, Rohit Paudel script famous victory for NepalBowling first against Afghanistan, the Nepal bowlers were simply unplayable, reducing the opposition to a low score of 102/7 in 20 overs, with Kushal Bhurtel and Lalit Rajbanshi sharing seven wickets between them. Meanwhile, against Nepal's assault, Afghanistan once found themselves in trouble at 65/6 in the 15th over, although Faisal Shinozada and Najibullah Zadran took them past the three-digit mark. Nepal also had a poor start with the bat, with their top order getting dismissed early on. However, the partnership between Sundeep Jora and Rohit Paudel revived their innings. Later, Paudel remained unbeaten on 33, while skipper Dipendra Singh Airee played a crucial knock of 15 runs. Read More: Pakistan Ready To Beat India In Asian Games, Sahibzada Farhan Claims While Eyeing GoldAs a result, Nepal chased down the modest total with 16 balls still to spare. Nepal always have dominated AfghanistanNotably, Nepal have always dominated Afghanistan in T20Is. The two Asian teams have met twice, with the former winning on both occasions. Notably, before their Asian Games 2026 encounter, when they last played each other in the 2014 T20 World Cup, both of them were associate nations. Back then, Nepal slammed a respectable total on the board, with Subash Khakurel’s half-century propelling them to 141/5. Defending it, Jitendra Mukhiya and Sompal Kami shared five wickets between them, as Afghanistan were reduced to 132/8, despite Asghar Afghan’s counter-attacking 49-run blitz.Nepal eye another major upset on road to a medal finish in Asian Games 2026Now, the road has gotten simpler for Nepal; a win against the lower-ranked Japan would see them through to the quarter-finals. And as they would finish at the top of Group A, they won’t face India, but will be at loggerheads with the Sahan Arachchige-led Sri Lankans. If Nepal could pull off another upset in the Asian Games 2026, this time against Sri Lanka, they might find themselves in medal contention. Interestingly, the Islanders have never played Sri Lanka in T20Is. Meanwhile, Afghanistan will most likely face the World Champions and the defending gold medalists, India, in their quarter-final bout. For Afghanistan, the road will only get tougher and tougher. In their history, they have never won an international fixture against India, who have come fully gunned up to defend their Gold Medal. Read More: Ajit Agarkar Decisions That Caused A Stir, But Proved Beneficial In The Long Run