Nepal captain Rohit Paudel (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool) Nepal earned huge praise from former cricket stars after a thrilling four-run loss to England in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Although they did not win, many felt that Nepal put up an incredible fight and proved that they are a rising team in world cricket.Yuvraj Singh praised their spirit and wrote: “Big respect to Nepal. They stood up against one of the best teams in the world, fought till the last ball and showed what faith and heart can do. This is how teams grow and champions rise. The cricketing world is watching!”
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Ravichandran Ashwin also applauded them and said, “Unbelievable from Nepal. Definitely among the best of emerging cricketing nations. Huge potential and positive.” Irfan Pathan added: “So the finishing touches were missing, but Nepal are clearly on the right track. Great to see them put England under the pump,” while Dale Steyn quipped: “Nepal, I offer my services if you ever need them! Up, up, UP!”England won the match by just four runs after scoring 184 runs. Jacob Bethell and captain Harry Brook both played key roles with half-centuries, while Jos Buttler reached a major T20 World Cup milestone. For Nepal, the likes of Dipendra Singh Airee and Nandan Yadav picked important wickets to keep England in check.Chasing 185, Nepal started strongly but lost their first wickets. Rohit Paudel and Dipendra Singh Airee built a big partnership and kept Nepal in the game. However, both got out in quick succession, hurting their pursuit. Lokesh Bam played a brilliant unbeaten knock at the end but Nepal finished on 180/6 for the loss of just four runs.Despite the defeat, Nepal’s performance impressed the cricketing world and showed that they are a team to watch in the future.
