ICC Intercontinental Cup and Shield

NEPAL v MALAYSIA Heavy rain prevented play before 1.30 pm on the opening day after which Malaysia chose to bat. Neither Rakesh Madhavan nor Rohan Selvaratnam seemed troubled as they put on 67 runs for the first wicket but once they were out and the pitch dried out, Nepal’s spin bowlers gained the upper hand. Sanjam Regmi (off breaks) and Raj Kumar Pradhan (leg spin) despatched the middle order cheaply with Regmi taking three wickets for 25. Altogether Malaysia lost six wickets for 64 runs before the close of play ended their misery. The following morning saw Malaysia in even more difficulty. They added just one run before their last four wickets all fell at the same score, Mehaboob Alam finishing the innings with an impressive spell of pace bowling. Nepal fared little better in reply, losing five wickets for 38 runs, all to Suresh Navaratnam who maintained his reputation as Malaysia’s top cricketer and one of the leading Asian all-rounders. Had it not been for doughty resistance from Shakti Gauchan, Nepal might never have obtained a first-innings lead. Batting solidly and scoring at a strike rate of only 29.8, he received useful support from Paras Khadka and Raju Basnet. In addition to Navaratnam, Rohan Suppiah and Sarath Jayawardene bowled economically but, with a lead of 66 runs, Nepal held the psychological advantage. Malaysia clearly recognised this and chose to start their second innings with a nightwatchman, Suppiah. He lasted only until the sixth over before falling to Regmi. Thus Malaysia faced the prospect of the last day with one wicket already down and an injury to Ganesan Suriyaprakash which would prevent him from batting. By now overawed, Malaysia submitted tamely and were dismissed in the 46th over of the third day. Only four players reached double figures and the highest score was only 27 by Matthew William. Five of Nepal’s bowlers shared the wickets. With only 34 runs needed for victory, Nepal won easily, Navaratnam getting the only wicket to fall. Gauchan shared the Man-of-the-Match award with Alam which was hard luck on Regmi whose bowling was responsible for Malaysia’s initial collapse. There was also a case to be made for Navaratnam who added four catches to his six wickets but, unfortunately for his team, made little contribution with the bat. Nepal now had 41.5 points from their two games but whether this would be sufficient for them to win the Asian group would depend on whether Malaysia could produce sterner resistance in their home game with the United Arab Emirates. 18 ICC Intercontinental Cup 2004