Nepal Women's Cricket Team Begins Asian Games 2026 Qualifier Campaign Against China

Kathmandu. The Nepali women's national cricket team is starting its campaign today with the goal of qualifying for the Asian Games to be held in Japan in 2026. 

Nepal is facing China in its first match of Group 'B' in the Asian Games Women's T-20 Qualifier. This match is scheduled to start at 11:45 AM at the Biomass Oval ground in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 

Malaysia will host all the matches of the Women's T-20 Qualifier from May 26 to 31 at the Biomass Oval. The six participating teams in this qualifying tournament have been divided into two groups. Group 'A' includes Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Thailand, while Group 'B' includes Nepal, China, and Indonesia. 

After the round-robin league, the top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals. A total of three teams, the two finalists and one winner of the third-place playoff, will secure a place in the Asian Games 2026 to be held in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan. 

Host Japan and ICC full member nations Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka have already qualified for the tournament automatically. 

The Nepali team is currently in excellent form. Ranked 22nd with a rating of 95 in the ICC Women's T-20 rankings, Nepal has won all of its last five T-20 international matches. 

Nepal, considered a strong team, has many players who can change the outcome of the game. In this tournament, Nepal's top-order aggressive batter Samjhana Khadka and the right-arm fast bowler in excellent form, Kabita Kunwar, are being watched with interest. Samjhana can put pressure on the bowlers from the first ball, while Kabita is expected to play a significant role for Nepal in bowling. 

The team will be led by regular captain Indu Barma, while Puja Mahato has been given the responsibility of vice-captain. The team includes experienced players Sita Rana Magar and Rubina Chhetri, along with Bindu Rawal, Samjhana Khadka, Ruby Poddar, Kabita Joshi, Kabita Kunwar, and Riya Sharma. 

Similarly, Anu Kathayat, Manisha Upadhyay, Sony Pakhrin, and Simana KC have also made it to the national team. In addition to the main team, CAN has kept four players on the reserve list. The reserve players include Savitri Dhami, Somu Bisht, Sana Praveen, and Laxmi Saud. 

Meanwhile, China has already started its qualifying campaign with a victory. China is at the top of the points table after defeating Indonesia by 3 wickets in its first match. In that match, Indonesia scored only 82 runs for the loss of 9 wickets after playing the full 20 overs. Ni Putu Ayu Nanda Sakarini was the highest scorer for Indonesia with 37 runs off 46 balls, including 5 fours. 

While chasing the modest target of 83 runs, China faced pressure after losing three early wickets. However, Mingyu Zhu laid the foundation for victory by scoring 32 runs off 38 balls. With the support of Wang Huiying and Xinyu Chen, China reached the target in the last over, losing seven wickets. On the bowling front, China's Ma Ruike took two wickets. 

Looking at the statistics of the Biomass Oval ground, the average score in the first innings in women's T-20 here is 95 and in the second innings is 70, indicating that batting here is not that easy. 

The Chinese team for today's match includes Cai Yuzhi, Jiaping Li, Ma Ruike, Zhao Yihan, Xi Wenyan, Wang Huiying, Gong Yuting, Wei Haiting, Peng Lianggu, Mingyu Zhu, and Wen Sinan. 
Nepal, with high morale due to consecutive victories, aims to make a happy start to the tournament by defeating China today.