Rohit Paudel’s Century Steers Nepal Past Canada by 24 Runs in World Cup League 2

AL AMERAT, Oman, Oct 11, 2026. Rohit Paudel made 101 off 127 balls and Nepal’s bowlers held their nerve to beat Canada by 24 runs in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2. Nepal posted 235 and bowled Canada out for 211 in 48.4 overs. Paudel was named Player of the Match.

Nepal recover from early trouble

Canada won the toss and chose to field, and they made early inroads. Nepal were 10 for 2 inside three overs after Aasif Sheikh (4) and Ishan Pandey (0) fell cheaply. Arjun Kumal’s 23 off 54 balls kept the innings together until he fell at 56 for 3 in the 17th over.

Paudel anchored the innings from there. He reached his fifty off 75 balls and added 77 for the fourth wicket with Basir Ahamad (30 off 57) before Basir fell at 133. Dipendra Singh Airee (6) followed soon after, leaving Nepal 141 for 5 in the 38th over.

Gulsan Jha then changed the pace. He hit 48 off 34 balls with four fours and three sixes, a strike rate of 141.17, and he and Paudel added 82 for the sixth wicket before Jha fell at 223 in the 48th over. Paudel completed his hundred off 125 balls and was out for 101 in the next over, having hit eight fours and a six.

Nepal lost five wickets in the final ten overs but still scored 88 runs in that period. They were bowled out on the last ball of the innings for 235.

Akhil Kumar was the pick of Canada’s bowlers with 4 for 68 from his ten overs. Sukhjinder Singh took 3 for 44 and Zahid Shirzad 2 for 42. Harsh Thaker was the most economical, conceding 32 runs from ten overs (3.20 an over) without a wicket.

Lamichhane’s spell turns the chase

Canada’s chase of 236 never got fully going. Yuvraaj Samra fell lbw to Karan KC for 1 in the fourth over. Aaron Johnson (44 off 49) and Samit Gohel (35 off 59) then steadied the innings, taking Canada to 73 for 1.

The match turned in the 17th over. Nepal captain Sandeep Lamichhane removed Johnson with the first ball of the over, caught by Gulsan Jha, and Aaditya Varadarajan with the next, caught by Kumal first ball. Canada went from 73 for 1 to 73 for 3. Gohel was run out for 35 at 94 for 4, and Harsh Thaker was bowled by Lalit Rajbanshi for 15.

Canada reached 124 for 5 at the 30.3-over mark and 150 in the 36th over. Shreyas Movva (26 off 34) and captain Hamza Tariq (26 off 29) offered resistance, but both were out before the 40th over. Akhil Kumar finished unbeaten on 30 off 40 balls, but he ran out of partners. Nandan Yadav took the last two wickets, and Canada were all out for 211 when Sukhjinder Singh was caught and bowled.

Nepal’s attack shared the wickets evenly. Yadav (2 for 41 in 8.4 overs), Karan KC (2 for 36), Rajbanshi (2 for 36) and Lamichhane (2 for 33) each took two, and two run outs completed the dismissals. Lamichhane was the most economical at 3.30 an over.

Why it matters

Nepal’s win came from a hundred that rebuilt the innings after an early collapse and a bowling attack that kept pressure on throughout. Paudel’s 101 was the highest score of the match, and no Canada batter passed 44. League 2 matches carry ODI status (this was ODI no. 5030) and count towards the ICC’s World Cup qualification pathway, so each result matters to the associate teams involved.