KATHMANDU: The Al Amerat Cricket Stadium in Muscat, Oman, is once again set to be witness to a decisive clash on Sunday. To open the door to the ICC T-20 World Cup journey, which will be jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka next year, two old rivals, Nepal and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), are clashing.

The match between these two old rivals of South Asian cricket will determine the future of the World Cup journey. When these two teams entered the field in the last year, it became a fight of recollection, not of win or loss. These two teams had also clashed in the final of the ICC T-20 World Cup Asia Qualifier two years ago.

In the semi-final held at Mulpani’s upper ground, the home team Nepal made a spectacular eight-wicket victory and returned to the world stage after 10 years. The wound inflicted on the heart by that big defeat is still fresh. Now, on Sunday, the UAE will take the field to take revenge for that. That is why Nepali team captain Rohit Kumar Paudel seems a bit cautious.

“The UAE is the best team among the participating teams in the tournament. We see them as a tough opponent. If we play according to our level, we can win,” Paudel says.

This time, both teams have reached the Super Six by becoming group winners. The UAE, which was in Group ‘A’, defeated Qatar by seven and Malaysia by six wickets. Nepal, which was in Group ‘B’, has gained confidence by defeating Kuwait by 58 and Japan by five wickets. Both these teams have shown strong batting performances to secure wins in the group stage. Since it is necessary to occupy the top three positions in the Super Six to reach the World Cup, everyone’s attention is focused on this match.

For the UAE, opener Alishan Sharafu is in excellent rhythm. He made an unbeaten 51 runs against Qatar and contributed 34 runs against Malaysia. Captain Muhammad Waseem has also improved his lost rhythm. After being dismissed for just 11 runs against Qatar, he played a strong batting innings of 84 runs in the second match against Malaysia. The aggressive batting of both these players has made the UAE the strongest team in the tournament.

Photo Courtesy: CAN

However, Nepal is also in excellent rhythm. Before visiting Oman, Nepal played a three-match T20 series against the Test team West Indies. In the first two matches of that series, which was held in the UAE’s home ground, Nepal won by 19 and 90 runs, but they lost by 10 wickets in the last match due to lack of composure.

Nepal, which had to play on the difficult pitch of Oman after the flat pitch of the UAE, has shown composure in the group stage matches. In particular, all-rounders Kushal Bhurtel and Gulshan Kumar Jha have looked the most influential.

In the match against Kuwait, while chasing a target of 142 runs, Kushal stood at the crease until the last over. He was bowled by Anudeep Chenthamara in the 19.5th over. He hit three fours and three sixes off 56 balls and also took one wicket. Gulshan also made 18 runs by hitting three sixes off 6 balls in the last over, enabling Nepal to give Kuwait a strong target.

In the match against Japan, Kushal could not shine in both batting and bowling. However, Gulshan made an equal contribution from both and gave the team two bonus points in the Super Six. In that match, he made 28 runs with the bat and took two wickets with the ball.

Nepal’s current concern is on the bowlers. Although they performed adequately against Kuwait, Nepal had to struggle to win against Japan, which is ranked 40th in the ICC rankings. Mainly, Nepal got a target of 131 runs because they could not break the partnership between Kendel Kadowaki and Esam Rahman. Nepal also had to wait until the 18th over to secure the victory.

Oman, Nepal, and the UAE have all reached the Super Six with bonus points. Therefore, these three teams are all at the gateway to the World Cup. The team that wins Sunday’s match will almost confirm their ticket for the World Cup.

The interesting thing is that these two teams have clashed 10 times so far. In those encounters, both teams have secured an equal five wins. However, in the ACC Premier Cup semi-final held in Oman a year and a half ago, the UAE won by 6 wickets, crushing Nepal’s dream of playing the Asia Cup for the second consecutive time. These two teams are facing each other on the same ground, but Gulshan seems confident of taking revenge for that defeat. “Our job is still pending. I am confident that we will play the World Cup,” he says.

Whether history repeats itself on this ground this time or a new chapter is written, as Gulshan says, the result of the evening will tell.