In next three games, we are going to win at least one: Nepal's Sompal Kami

Sompal Kami and Karan KC said Nepal were 20-30 runs short against the Netherlands in their opening encounter of the 2024 T20 World Cup on June 4 (Tuesday). Nepal were bundled out for just 106 in 19.2 overs but managed to drag the game to 18.4 overs in the second innings. The two also admitted that the toss played a big role in their defeat in Dallas.

“In conditions like these, wicket matters a lot. But, the toss is not in our hands, our control and after we batted, it was our responsibility to reach to a respectable total. We could not set a good target. It was difficult to bat in this wicket and the condition was bad. We were 20-30 runs short. If we had made 20-30 runs, we would have celebrated the winning moment,” said Sompal.

Meanwhile, Karan added: “This wicket is beneficial for a medium pacer, therefore we had four medium pacers in the team. The wicket was also helpful for medium pacers. I think we are 20-30 runs short. That's why the results were not in our favor. We made some small mistakes. If we didn't make those mistakes, we could have won. We could have won even with such a small total.”

Asked to bat first, Nepal lost Kushal Bhurtel and Aasif Sheikh inside four overs. Skipper Rohit Paudel scored 35 off 37 but didn’t manage to put the Netherlands bowlers under any sort of pressure. Apart from him, Karan (17 off 12) was the only other Nepal batter to cross the 15-run mark.

“Everyone feels that way (hasty) when they play T20. But the games should be played like this in T20. We tried to score good in the powerplay and make our odds heavier. We couldn't do it. But I hope we will come back in the next three games,” said Sompal, who also thanked all the Nepal fans who came out there to support them.

“Obviously, the fans want to see us win. We try to give them the victory. I am grateful that about 10,000-15,000 people came to support us at the game. I am thankful that they came to support us after leaving all their work and problems. We couldn't give them happiness today, but we had given 100%. 

“It's cricket, and only one team can win. We didn't win today. But I'm definitely 100% sure in the next three games we are going to provide you at least one winning moment. We're going to be even happier after beating a big team. There's no pressure. As long as the Nepalese fans come to support the team, we're happy to see so many people from Nepal coming out to support us. We're more motivated than the pressure.”

Karan added: “We are very proud that we are Nepali because every ground, every place, every state, every country we go - every Nepali, most of numbers, Nepalis come there and support us. We are very blessed, you know, we are playing for Nepal and we are Nepali. So, thank you all the fans out there who loves us, who comes there, support us, whatever the result is. So, we are very blessed.”

Nepal are in Group D and will take on Sri Lanka in their next encounter on June 11. They will then face South Africa and Bangladesh. “I don't feel any pressure. We were under immense pressure in the qualifiers. We came here to prove that we are capable of playing for the Super 8. The World Cup has invited us, we have earned it, we have worked hard,” said Sompal. 

“I am very confident about our team. Our result has never mattered to us and this result will not matter in our next three games.”

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