Sudurpaschim Royals Beat Chitwan Rhinos by 5 Wickets — Brandon McMullen's 43 off 21 Makes Short Work of 130

On a day when the morning match at Kirtipur produced 361 runs, the afternoon game was decided by a bowling effort that kept the total small and a 21-ball innings that made it look smaller still. Sudurpaschim Royals chose to field, held Chitwan Rhinos to 129 for 6, and chased it down with 20 balls to spare.

Brandon McMullen was the difference. His 43 came off 21 balls with six fours and two sixes, and by the time he was out in the seventh over the Royals were 70 for 2 and the target was already a modest one. Ranjit Kumar took his wicket and Dipendra Singh Airee's on consecutive balls, but Ishan Pandey, Aarif Sheikh and Sherfane Rutherford saw the chase home.

The Royals' bowling did its work without a single spell going badly wrong. Hemant Dhami trapped Dev Khanal lbw in the second over, Scott Kuggeleijn bowled Arjun Saud in the fifth, and Airee had Dawid Malan caught behind in the tenth to make it 62 for 3. Anil Kharel gave away 18 in four overs and took Sikandar Raza's wicket, and Kuggeleijn returned to remove Bopara in the 19th, finishing with 2 for 26. Bibek Yadav was run out by Airee and Bhandari off the last ball.

The chase began with a wobble, Saif Zaib bowled by Rijan Dhakal in the second over with the score on 3. But Rijan's one over cost 18, Binod Bhandari hit two fours in his 11 off 7, and McMullen and Ishan Pandey added 36 off 19 balls. After Kumar's double strike left them on 70 for 4, Pandey's 25 took them past 100 before he was lbw to Mousom Dhakal at 103 for 5. Aarif Sheikh (20 not out off 26) and Sherfane Rutherford (21 not out off 15, with a six) then added the remaining 28 without alarm.

Ravi Bopara made 49 off 40 balls with three fours and two sixes, and he added 35 with Malan for the third wicket. Nobody else got past 17. Malan's 16 took 17 balls and Sikandar Raza's 15 took 20, and at 94 for 4 after 15.2 overs the Rhinos had left themselves a lot to do in the death overs. They scored 35 from the last 28 balls, which took them to 129 but no further.

With the ball, Ranjit Kumar was outstanding, taking 3 for 28 including McMullen and Airee on consecutive deliveries. Sikandar Raza conceded 26 in his four overs but did not take a wicket. Once McMullen had scored so quickly at the start, 130 was simply not enough to defend.

We have no pitch report for the second match of the double-header, so the numbers have to tell the story. The morning game had produced 180 and 181 for 6 on the same ground; here Chitwan managed only 129, and the Royals' bowlers went for less than seven an over between them. Whether that was the surface slowing up or simply better bowling, the scorecard cannot say. What it does show is that when McMullen attacked early in the chase, the runs came quickly: the Royals were 70 for 2 inside seven overs.

Forty-three runs is not a big score, but in a chase of 130 it can be the whole game. McMullen came in after Zaib fell at 3 for 1 in the second over and hit six fours and two sixes, so 36 of his 43 runs came in boundaries. He was caught by Dev Khanal off Ranjit Kumar in the seventh over, and by then the hardest part of the chase was over. He also bowled one over for 12 and caught Sikandar Raza off Kharel.

We got this one wrong. Our preview described Chitwan Rhinos as one of the NPL's steadier sides and called them marginal favourites because of that disciplined approach. Instead, the Rhinos' batting stalled in the middle overs and the Royals won with 20 balls to spare. We also suggested the Royals might need to be more conservative early in their innings; McMullen's 43 off 21 showed that attack was the better option. Our point that the side that read the conditions faster would have the advantage holds up, but it was the Royals who did it.

After the November 3 matches, Sudurpaschim Royals are fifth with four points from four games (two wins, two losses), but their net run rate of -1.064 is the lowest of the four teams on four points. Chitwan Rhinos are sixth with three points from three games (one win, one loss, one no result, net run rate -0.486). Lumbini Lions top the table with five points, and with Biratnagar Kings, Karnali Yaks, Janakpur Bolts and the Royals all on four, the race for the top four is wide open.