West Indies hammer Nepal to reach Super 8s

Men’s T20 World Cup, Group C, Mumbai

Nepal 133-8 (20 overs): Airee 58 (47), Kami 26* (15); Yadav 1-24

West Indies 134-1 (15.2 overs): Hope 61* (44), Hetmyer 46* (32); Holder 4-27

West Indies won by nine wickets

West Indies cruised to a convincing nine-wicket win over Nepal to progress to the T20 World Cup Super 8s and eliminate their winless opponents.

Having opened the tournament with convincing victories against Scotland and England, the two-time champions were keen to extend their winning run at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium.

Set a target of 134, they surged to 44-1 after the powerplay, with opener Brandon King the only wicket to fall in the entire innings.

West Indies captain Shai Hope brought up his half century from 38 balls and finished on 61 not out, with Shimron Hetmeyer scoring 46 not out off 32 balls as they sealed the win with 28 deliveries to spare.

Earlier Nepal, who were searching for their first win of the tournament, had struggled to find their rhythm after losing the toss and being sent in to bat.

They were limited to 22-3 in the powerplay by some solid bowling and fine fielding and struggled to really get going, despite Dipendra Singh Airee’s 58 and some late hitting by Sompal Kami in his 26 not out.