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Netherlands vs Nepal – the one match neither team can afford to lose
There are two obvious groups of death in this T20 World Cup, and Group D is one of them. Netherlands and Nepal are the two lowest-ranked sides in the group, but one of them comes into the tournament with serious pedigree in punching well above their weight at World Cups.
Remember this? And this? And this? And more recently, over the last two years, this, and this?
Before they can try and pull off results of that nature against South Africa, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, however, Netherlands will have to get past the one team they are favourites against. And it won’t be easy.
Netherlands have a 6-5 T20I record against Nepal overall, and their six meetings in the pandemic and post-pandemic eras have been dead even. They met three times earlier this year, in a triangular tournament in Kirtipur, and won once apiece in the league stage before Netherlands won a closely fought final.
Netherlands may have been here and done it before, while Nepal have only featured in one previous T20 World Cup, but the results they achieved in that tournament – in 2014, when they beat Afghanistan and fell short of a Super 10s spot only by virtue of net run-rate – should tell you that this could be a seriously tight contest.
Michael Levitt earned his first Netherlands call-up last year, at 19, and has gone on to become a key player at the top of the order since his debut this February. The South Africa-born Levitt has scored 349 runs in eight T20I innings so far, at an average of 43.62 and a strike rate of 156.50. He made Netherlands’ highest T20I score in only his second T20I, smashing 135 off just 62 balls against Namibia, and he comes into this tournament with form behind him too, scoring a 28-ball 55 in the warm-up victory over Sri Lanka.
You probably remember him for scoring the fastest T20I fifty, off just nine balls against Mongolia during last year’s Asian Games, but Dipendra Singh Airee Nepal’s highest run-getter in T20Is, has shown his quality against higher-ranked teams too. Netherlands know what he’s capable of; earlier this year, Nepal were six down against them in Kirtipur, needing 57 off 24 balls, when Airee went ballistic. His 34-ball 63 took Nepal to the doorstep of victory, before Roelof van der Merwe bowled him with four runs needed off three balls and Netherlands sealed a two run win.
Since Levitt’s emergence, Vikramjit Singh has dropped out of Netherlands’ first-choice opening combination. He may bat at No. 3 or 4 if he finds a place in their XI today.
Netherlands (probable): Max O’Dowd, Michael Levitt, Vikramjit Singh, Scott Edwards (capt & wk), Teja Nidamanuru, Bas de Leede, Sybrand Engelbrecht, Logan van Beek, Aryan Dutt, Paul van Meekeren, Vivian Kingma
With a visa refusal ending Sandeep Lamichhane’s potential participation in the World Cup, the question of Lalit Rajbanshi’s spin partner becomes highly pertinent. Sagar Dhakal was one of only two Nepal bowlers to complete their four-over quota in their warm-up game against Canada. It suggests that Nepal may be mulling starting the 22-year-old against Netherlands, if they decide to go with two left-arm spinners.
Nepal (probable): Kushal Bhurtel, Aasif Sheikh (wk), Anil Sah, Kushal Malla, Rohit Paudel (capt), Dipendra Singh Airee, Gulsan Jha, Sompal Kami, Karan KC, Lalit Rajbanshi, Abinash Bohara/Sagar Dhakal
[Cricinfo]
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PNB detect large haul of methamphetamine and heroin in local fishing trawler intercepted by Navy
Acting on credible information, the Sri Lanka Navy launched a special operation on the high seas on 11 Apr 25, resulting in the apprehension of 06 suspects along with a local multi-day fishing trawler, believed to be involved in smuggling of narcotics.
Subsequently, the intercepted trawler was brought to the Dikkowita Harbour, where a thorough inspection was carried out with the assistance of the Police Narcotic Bureau (PNB) experts, leading to the detection of approximately 77kg and 484g of heroin and 42kg and 334g of methamphetamine (Ice).
The consignment, which had been meticulously hidden in the trawler, was handed over to the PNB for onward legal action on 12 Apr.
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Sun directly overhead Thunukkai, Olumadu, Oddusudan, Kumulamunei and Chemmalei at about 12:11 noon. today [13]
On the apparent northward relative motion of the sun, it is going to be directly over the latitudes of Sri Lanka during 05th to 14th of April in this year.
The nearest areas of Sri Lanka over which the sun is overhead today (13th) are Thunukkai, Olumadu, Oddusudan, Kumulamunei and Chemmalei at about 12:11 noon.
Despite the absence of Mitchell Marsh, Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) bested Gujarat Titans (GT) in the battle of top orders and moved up to third on the IPL 2025 points table.
After Shubman Gill and B Sai Sudarshan forged a 120-run opening stand, GT managed only 60 off their last eight overs while losing six wickets. The variations of Ravi Bishnoi and Digyesh Rathi (8-0-66-3) helped LSG regain lost ground on a black-soil pitch at Ekana Stadium.
Aiden Markram and Rishzbh Pant, who was opening the batting for the first time in the IPL in nearly ten years, then maximised the powerplay to put LSG further ahead. Markram fell for 58 off 31 balls but Nicholas Pooran rushed LSG towards the finish line with a six-laden 61 off 34 balls. LSG completed the job with three balls to spare, snapping GT’s four-match winning streak.
After being asked to bat first, Gill and Sudharsan added 54 for 0 in the powerplay. Sudharsan had kicked off the innings with a slapped four off Shardul Thakur and then when Akash Deep pitched one too full, he drove the ball straight past him for four more.
T20 isn’t Sudharsan’s strongest format, but he keeps finding ways to score at a brisk pace with a low-risk approach. At the other end, Gill took more risks, often stepping out or manufacturing swinging room. When LSG tried to burgle an over from Markram, Gill and Sudharsan spoiled their plan by taking the part-time offspinner for 15 runs.
Sudharsan’s knock could’ve been cut short on 46 had Abdul Samad held onto a catch at cover off Rathi. He went onto bring up his fourth half-century in six innings in IPL, soon after Gill had raised his own fifty.
The dismissals of Gill and Sudharsan in successive overs, however, brought LSG back into the contest. While Avesh Khan had Gill caught at the long-on boundary with a cutter, Bishnoi had Sudharsan caught at cover with a skiddy wrong ‘un. Bishnoi also had Washington Sundar chopping on for 2 with the wrong ‘un.
Mystery spinner Rathi, who had two catches dropped off his bowling, eventually wrote his name into the wickets column when Thakur held onto a tough chance at short fine leg to dismiss Jos Buttler for 16 off 14 balls. Thakur then closed out the innings with his nifty variations, which fetched him the wickets of Sherfane Rutherford and Rahul Tewatia in the final over. From 120 for 0 after 12 overs, they finished on 180 for 6.
LSG rattled off 61 for 0 in the powerplay, with Markram claiming 38 of those. Pant, who had bumped himself up the order, got off to a more sedate start and was in discomfort after being struck on the knee by left-arm seamer Arshad Khan.
Pant was happy to ride in Markram’s slipstream before he attacked Rashid Khan in the last over of the powerplay, slog-sweeping the wristspinner for four over midwicket. In the next over, though, when he charged at Prasidh Krishna, the bowler shifted his line wide of off stump and had Pant slicing a catch to deep third for 21 off 18 balls. Markram, meanwhile, mixed orthodox strokeplay with T20 innovation to bring up a 26-ball fifty.
Pooran had already hit two sixes by the time GT introduced R Sai Kishore into the attack in the tenth over. The first delivery, which seemed like the carrom ball, was whacked over midwicket for six. He then smoked the left-arm fingerspinner for two more sixes off the next three balls he bowled to him and dumped him out of the attack. With his big hits, Pooran brought the asking rate down to a run-a-ball. He ended up with seven sixes on the day, extending his tally to 31 sixes this IPL. The next best on the list hasn’t even hit half as many.
On the day, Pooran alone hit four more sixes than the entire GT team.
By the time Rashid removed Pooran in the 16th over, LSG needed 26 off 28 balls. Ayush Badoni, LSG’s Impact Player, helped knock off those runs with an unbeaten cameo.
Brief scores:
Lucknow Super Giants 186 for 4 in 19.3 overs (Nicholas Pooran 61, Aiden Markram 58, Rishabh Pant 21, Ayush Badoni 28*; Prasidh Krishna 2-26, Rashid Khan 1-35, Washington Sundar 1-28) beat Gujarat Titans180 for 6 in 20 overs (Shubhman Gill 60, Bhardwaj Sai Sudharsan 56, Jos Buttler 16, Sherfaine Rutherford 22, Masood Shahrukh Khan 11*; Shardul Thakur 2-24, Digvesh Rathi 1-30, Avesh Khan 1-32, Ravi Bishnoi 2-36) by six wickets
[Cricinfo]
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