The Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Match Scorecard from the 106th match of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League Two 2023-27 tells a story of home comfort and clinical chasing. Played on Monday, May 18, 2026, at the Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground in Kirtipur, the match ended with Nepal completing a comfortable six-wicket victory over Scotland, with 71 balls to spare. Anyone searching the Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Match Scorecard will find a game defined by two contrasting spells with the ball and a composed, unhurried run chase led by the home captain.
Scotland won the toss, chose to bat first, and rode a blistering innings from Brandon McMullen to post 194 all out in 39.1 overs. But Lalit Rajbanshi’s match-winning four-wicket haul, backed by Sandeep Lamichhane’s three scalps, pulled Nepal back into the contest before Ishan Pandey and Rohit Paudel shared a match-defining stand to seal it. This Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team encounter also carried a personal milestone, with Lamichhane becoming the fastest bowler in history to reach 150 ODI wickets. The turning point of the match arrived early in Nepal’s chase, once Rajbanshi’s spell dismantled the Scottish middle order and left the total well within reach.
Setting The Scene: Venue, Series Context, And Why This Match Mattered
Kirtipur has become something of a fortress for the home side in recent years, and this fixture was always going to be shaped as much by conditions as by form. The Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground typically produces a first-innings total in the region of 215 and a second-innings chase closer to 195, meaning both dugouts walked in with a rough sense of the identical par score before a ball was bowled. This particular Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Match Scorecard meeting also carried extra context: it was part of the ongoing 2026 Nepal Tri-Nation Series, which also features the United States, and it followed a narrow two-run defeat for Nepal against Scotland earlier in the same series window.
For Nepal, this was a genuine opportunity to level the ledger in the tri-series and rebuild momentum on home soil after struggling for consistency through the earlier rounds of League Two. For Scotland, already sitting at the top of the League Two standings, the match was more about maintaining rhythm and protecting a comfortable points cushion than desperation. That contrast in stakes is visible in how each side approached the game, with Scotland playing with the freedom of a side that had less to lose and Nepal playing with the discipline of a team fighting for positional points.
Toss And Conditions Report
Richie Berrington won the toss for Scotland and had no hesitation in choosing to bat first, a call that lines up with the historical pattern at this ground, where sides batting first have traditionally posted competitive totals before the pitch begins to offer more turn later in the day. Early season heat and a firm surface made strokeplay easier in the first half of the Scotland innings, while turn and slower pace crept in as the match wore on, which explains why Nepal’s spin-heavy bowling attack became so influential in the middle overs. This is a recurring theme in the Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team rivalry at this venue, where the team winning the toss and batting first does not automatically win the match, since chasing sides have historically found batting easier under the same conditions later in the day.
Match Summary Table
| Team | Runs | Wickets | Overs | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | 194 | 10 | 39.1 | Lost |
| Nepal | 199 | 4 | 38.1 | Won by 6 wickets |
Scotland’s innings promised more than it delivered, as an explosive powerplay and a McMullen special could not carry the total past 200. Nepal’s reply never really wobbled once Pandey and Paudel came together, and this Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Match Scorecard shows a chase completed with almost 12 overs unused. The result lifted host nation Nepal from seventh to fifth place in the League Two standings, while Scotland remained top of the table despite the defeat.
Scotland Innings Report: McMullen’s Late Assault Falls Short Of A Big Total
Scotland’s innings began with intent, with George Munsey and Brandon McMullen combining for 66 runs inside the mandatory powerplay overs. Munsey fell for 21 as Nepal’s spinners began to find their lengths, and Mark Watt’s cameo of 20 lower down the order added some late-innings support, but it was McMullen who defined the innings. His 73 came off just 44 balls, laced with six fours and six sixes, and for a period it looked as though Scotland might push well beyond 220. Once McMullen fell, however, Nepal’s bowlers took full control, and the innings folded from a position of strength to 194 all out in 39.1 overs.
Michael English played the anchor role at the other end of the innings, compiling a patient 51 off 72 balls while wickets tumbled around him. Captain Richie Berrington managed just 12 before becoming one of Lalit Rajbanshi’s four victims, and that dismissal effectively ended any hope of Scotland reaching a truly imposing total. The gap between Scotland’s fast start and their eventual total is the clearest evidence in this Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Match Scorecard of how quickly momentum shifted once the spinners were introduced.
Nepal Innings Chase Report: Pandey And Paudel Take Control
Nepal’s chase began under pressure after both openers were dismissed relatively cheaply, with Kushal Bhurtel out lbw to Brandon McMullen for 28 and Aasif Sheikh run out for 29 following an early flurry of boundaries. That left Nepal needing a rebuilding partnership, and Ishan Pandey, playing just his second ODI, answered the call alongside captain Rohit Paudel. The pair added exactly 104 runs for the third wicket, a stand built on sensible running between the wickets and calculated boundary hitting rather than reckless risk-taking.
Pandey was eventually caught and bowled by Mark Watt for 55 off 61 balls, an innings that included five fours and two sixes and announced him as a genuine talent for Nepal’s middle order. Dipendra Singh Airee fell for just two runs, also to Watt, but by that stage the equation had already tilted decisively in Nepal’s favour. Paudel remained unbeaten on 74 off 98 balls, striking five fours and two sixes, and brought up the win in trademark fashion with a six off Michael Leask, finishing the chase with 71 balls to spare. Aarif Sheikh stayed unbeaten on eight at the other end as Nepal completed a comfortable win.
Batting Highlights Table
| Player | Runs | Balls | 4s | 6s | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brandon McMullen (SCO) | 73 | 44 | 6 | 6 | 165.91 |
| Michael English (SCO) | 51 | 72 | 4 | 1 | 70.83 |
| Rohit Paudel* (NEP) | 74 | 98 | 5 | 2 | 75.51 |
| Ishan Pandey (NEP) | 55 | 61 | 5 | 2 | 90.16 |
McMullen’s 73 off just 44 balls was the standout knock of the day, a mix of clean hitting through the line and calculated risk-taking against spin. English played the anchor role beautifully at the other end, working the ball into gaps while McMullen took the aerial route. For Nepal, the game turned on the third-wicket stand between Pandey and Paudel, who added exactly 104 runs together to erase any batting collapse fears and steer the chase home. Paudel finished unbeaten, sealing the win in trademark fashion with a six off Michael Leask.
Full Run-Scorers Card: Scotland Innings
| Batter | Runs | Contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Brandon McMullen | 73 | Top scorer, out attacking after a 44-ball blitz |
| Michael English | 51 | Anchored the innings after the top order fell away |
| George Munsey | 21 | Set the early powerplay tempo alongside McMullen |
| Mark Watt | 20 | Late-order cameo that lifted the total past 190 |
| Richie Berrington (c) | 12 | Removed by Lalit Rajbanshi at a key moment |
Disclaimer: This article is based on publicly available match reports and scorecard summaries of the Nepal vs Scotland ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League Two match. While accuracy has been prioritized, some detailed statistics may be unavailable. For the official scorecard, please check authorized cricket sources.
These five batters accounted for 177 of Scotland’s 194 runs, with the remaining total made up of extras and lower-order contributions from the rest of the batting card that did not reach double figures individually.
Full Run-Scorers Card: Nepal Innings
| Batter | Runs | Contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Rohit Paudel* (c) | 74 | Unbeaten, finished the chase with a six off Leask |
| Ishan Pandey | 55 | Anchored the match-winning third-wicket stand |
| Aasif Sheikh | 29 | Quick start at the top before being run out |
| Kushal Bhurtel | 28 | Gave Nepal a solid platform before falling lbw |
| Aarif Sheikh* | 8 | Unbeaten, saw the chase home alongside Paudel |
| Dipendra Singh Airee | 2 | Fell cheaply to Mark Watt |
Together these six batters accounted for all 196 of Nepal’s individually-scored runs, with the small remainder coming from extras to complete the total of 199.
Bowling Figures Table
| Bowler | Overs | Runs | Wickets | Economy |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lalit Rajbanshi (NEP) | 8.0 | 32 | 4 | 4.00 |
| Sandeep Lamichhane (NEP) | 10.0 | 47 | 3 | 4.70 |
| Mark Watt (SCO) | 10.0 | 58 | 2 | 5.80 |
| Brandon McMullen (SCO) | 3.0 | 5 | 1 | 1.67 |
Nepal’s spin duo did the heavy lifting with the ball. Rajbanshi, bowling with control through the middle overs, dismantled Scotland’s lower-middle order and claimed the wickets of captain Richie Berrington and Michael Leask on his way to the Player of the Match award. Lamichhane was expensive by his own standards but still made history, becoming the fastest bowler ever to reach 150 ODI wickets, doing so in just 73 matches to eclipse Mitchell Starc’s previous record of 77.
Full Wicket-Takers Card: Nepal Bowling (Scotland Innings)
| Bowler | Wickets | Contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Lalit Rajbanshi | 4 | Match-winning spell, removed Berrington and Leask |
| Sandeep Lamichhane | 3 | Set an ODI record for fastest to 150 wickets |
| Sompal Kami | 1 | Chipped in during the middle overs |
| Dipendra Singh Airee | 1 | Added pressure with a breakthrough of his own |
| Nandan Yadav | 1 | Completed the wicket-sharing effort for Nepal |
All ten Scotland wickets are accounted for across these five bowlers, with Rajbanshi and Lamichhane doing the bulk of the damage between them.
Full Wicket-Takers Card: Scotland Bowling (Nepal Innings)
| Bowler | Wickets | Contribution |
|---|---|---|
| Mark Watt | 2 | Dismissed both Ishan Pandey and Dipendra Singh Airee |
| Brandon McMullen | 1 | Removed Kushal Bhurtel early in the chase |
Only three of Nepal’s four wickets fell to bowlers, with Aasif Sheikh’s dismissal coming via a run out rather than a bowling breakthrough, which is why the wickets column here totals three against Nepal’s four fallen wickets.
Player Of The Match Spotlight: Lalit Rajbanshi
Lalit Rajbanshi’s spell was the single biggest factor separating the two sides in this Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Match Scorecard contest. Bowling left-arm spin through the middle overs, he removed both Scotland’s captain, Richie Berrington, and all-rounder Michael Leask inside the space of a few overs, breaking whatever momentum the top order had built. Finishing with figures of 4/32 from his eight overs, Rajbanshi earned the Player of the Match award for turning a promising Scotland total into a chaseable one, and his performance stands as one of the more understated match-winning spells in this fixture’s recent history.
Key Moments & Tactical Analysis
Toss impact: Scotland won the toss and chose to bat first on a Kirtipur surface that traditionally favours chasing sides in the second innings, and the eventual result played out true to that trend within this Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team fixture.
Powerplay momentum: Scotland raced to 66 runs inside the first ten overs, with McMullen and Munsey attacking Nepal’s new-ball bowlers. That early intent set the tone for a total that, on pace alone, looked capable of pushing past 220-230.
Turning point: Lalit Rajbanshi’s introduction changed the complexion of the innings completely. His four-wicket burst through the middle overs, combined with Lamichhane picking off George Munsey and Matthew Cross, dragged Scotland from a promising position down to 194 all out.
Captaincy decisions: Rohit Paudel’s calm head at the top of Nepal’s chase, and his decision to trust the Pandey partnership to build steadily rather than chase the required rate too aggressively, paid off with more than 11 overs unused at the finish. Richie Berrington’s decision to bat first was defensible given the ground’s historical first-innings average of around 215, but his own innings of 12 runs, ending at Rajbanshi’s hands, did not help Scotland’s cause.
Pitch and conditions factor: The TU International Cricket Ground pitch offered turn as the match progressed, which explains why Nepal’s spinners were so effective and why Scotland’s own bowling attack struggled to contain the flowing stand between Pandey and Paudel.
Key Stats Table
| Metric | Scotland | Nepal |
|---|---|---|
| Total Runs | 194 | 199 |
| Run Rate | 4.95 | 5.21 |
| Wickets Lost | 10 | 4 |
| Overs Used | 39.1 | 38.1 |
Nepal’s superior run rate of 5.21 against Scotland’s 4.95 reflects a chase that was calm rather than frantic, built around one dominant partnership rather than continuous boundary hitting. Scotland lost all ten wickets in their innings, a sign of how effectively Nepal’s bowling attack, particularly the spin pairing of Rajbanshi and Lamichhane, kept chipping away at the total, while Nepal needed to lose only four wickets to complete the chase with balls to spare. This Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Match Scorecard comparison shows Scotland relying heavily on two big innings from McMullen and English, while Nepal spread the workload more evenly between its top order.
Points Table Impact: What The Win Means In League Two
Results in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League Two carry real qualification weight, since the top four teams from the eight-team standings advance directly to the World Cup Qualifier. This win lifted Nepal from seventh to fifth place, taking them to 22 points from 27 matches, a meaningful step for a side that had spent much of the campaign on the fringes of the table. Scotland, despite the defeat, remained comfortably on top with 38 points from 31 games, underlining just how much of a cushion they had built over the course of the tournament. Every Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Standings update from this stage of the competition reflects a race where Nepal are clawing back into contention while Scotland can afford the occasional slip.
Squad Watch: Key Players Involved
Both squads brought experienced campaigners into this fixture. Nepal fielded Rohit Paudel as captain alongside vice-captain Dipendra Singh Airee, with Kushal Bhurtel, Aasif Sheikh, Aarif Sheikh, Sompal Kami, Sandeep Lamichhane, Lalit Rajbanshi, and rising talent Ishan Pandey rounding out the batting and bowling options. Scotland took the field under Richie Berrington, supported by George Munsey, Michael Leask, Mark Watt, Matthew Cross, Brandon McMullen, Michael English, and Safyaan Sharif. Searches for Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Players and their recent form will show Munsey as Scotland’s leading League Two run-scorer this cycle and Lamichhane as Nepal’s most prolific wicket-taker in the same period, underlining just how central both were expected to be, and ultimately were, to this fixture.
Head-to-Head Analysis
Across their most recent nine ODI meetings before this fixture, Nepal held a narrow historical edge, having won five times to Scotland’s three, underlining just how competitive this rivalry has become since both sides entered the ICC Cricket World Cup League Two structure. This latest result was Nepal’s third win over Scotland in four League Two meetings specifically, a run that reflects growing home comfort at venues like Kirtipur. When researching Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Players and past head-to-head data, it is clear that Scotland’s batting depth, led by George Munsey and Richie Berrington, is usually the difference-maker when they win, while Nepal typically relies on a combination of spin control and calm middle-order chasing, exactly as seen in this contest.
Historical Rivalry
Scotland and Nepal have crossed paths repeatedly since 2022 across ODI and T20I cricket, with matches ranging from low-scoring thrillers, such as Scotland’s two-run win in Dundee in June 2025 built on a Richie Berrington century, to high-scoring shootouts. Michael Leask’s unbeaten 107 in a losing cause back in February 2023 remains one of the most memorable individual knocks in this rivalry, even though Nepal chased that total down by three wickets. This particular Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Timeline shows a fixture that has swung back and forth, making every new meeting, including this one in Kirtipur, genuinely difficult to predict.
What’s Next For Both Sides
The Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Match Scorecard highlights an important result for both teams as the League Two campaign progresses. Nepal’s immediate focus shifts to their final home fixture of this window against the United States, where they will look to build on the confidence gained from this successful chase. Later in the year, Nepal are scheduled for further League Two assignments in the Netherlands and Oman.
Scotland, meanwhile, will aim to strengthen their middle-order batting in their next fixture. The Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Match Scorecard showed how Scotland struggled to build partnerships after McMullen’s dismissal. They will look to address this area while maintaining their strong position at the top of the League Two standings.
Where To Watch Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team
Fans searching for Where To Watch Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team fixtures should check the official broadcast listings on the ICC website and regional cricket broadcasters covering ICC Cricket World Cup League Two matches, as coverage varies by territory and series.
Read Also: Nepal National Cricket Team Vs Oman National Cricket Team Match Scorecard
Conclusion
This Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Match Scorecard matters well beyond the scoreline. For Nepal, the win over Scotland lifted the hosts from seventh to fifth in the League Two standings with 22 points from 27 matches, keeping alive their hopes of climbing into World Cup Qualifier contention. For Scotland, despite the loss, the team stayed top of the table on 38 points from 31 games, with the top four sides in the eight-team competition set to qualify directly for the World Cup Qualifier. Anyone tracking the Scotland National Cricket Team Vs Nepal National Cricket Team Standings should note how tightly this race remains contested in the second half of the League Two cycle. Nepal next face the United States again in their final home fixture of this window, while Scotland travel on to their next assignment in the series aiming to bounce back.
? FAQs
What was the final score?
Scotland 194 all out (39.1 overs); Nepal 199/4 (38.1 overs). Nepal won by six wickets.
Who was Player of the Match?
Lalit Rajbanshi, for his 4/32 with the ball.
Who scored most runs?
Rohit Paudel top-scored overall with an unbeaten 74 for Nepal.
Who took most wickets?
Lalit Rajbanshi took the most wickets in the match, finishing with 4/32.
What was the turning point?
Rajbanshi’s four-wicket burst through Scotland’s middle order, which pulled the total back from a promising start to just 194.
