Nepal’s men’s cricket team advanced to the quarterfinals of the 20th Asian Games after heavy rain canceled their final group match against Japan. Each team received one point when their Group A game was called off without any play due to continuous rain. Nepal topped Group A with 3 points after winning one match and drawing one, while Afghanistan finished second with 2 points. This secured Nepal’s spot in the knockout stage.
Nepal scored 149/4 in a rain-shortened 15-over match at Aichi Prefectural Korogi Sports Park. After losing the coin toss and batting first, Nepal started well but quickly lost three wickets. The team recovered thanks to strong batting in the middle order. Sundeep Jora hit 57 runs off 32 balls with 5 fours and 3 sixes, while Lokesh Bam scored 52 off 22 balls with 6 sixes. Opening batter Aasif Sheikh contributed 21 off 15 balls, but Kushal Bhurtel (16), Kushal Malla (9), and Gulsan Jha (7) all got out cheaply as Japanese bowlers applied early pressure. Japan’s bowlers performed well, with Reo Sakurano-Thomas taking 1 for 7 off 2 overs, Declan Suzuki-McComb taking 1 for 8, and Ibrahim Takahashi taking 1 for 21.
Japan needed to chase 150 runs in the rain-affected game, requiring 10 runs per over. However, another downpour after the break made the field unplayable, and officials called off the match with no result declared.