KATHMANDU: Nepal ‘A’ cricket team clinched its second consecutive win over Assam Cricket Association, defeating the hosts by 9 runs in a thrilling encounter held on Saturday night.

The victory was powered by a brilliant half-century from Sandeep Jora.

With this win, Nepal now leads the five-match T20 practice series 2–1.

Earlier, Nepal had lost the opening match by 15 runs under the Duckworth-Lewis method, before bouncing back strongly to win the second game by 96 runs.

Opting to bat first after losing the toss, Nepal played out the full 20 overs and set a target of 197, finishing on 196 for 6 wickets.

Sandeep Jora top-scored with a superb 74 off 48 balls. Adil Alam contributed 35 runs, Tirtharaj Das 33, and captain Anil Kumar Sah 31.

Assam’s Akash Sengupta picked up two wickets.

In reply, Assam fought hard but could only reach 187 in their 20 overs.

Nihar Deka was their highest scorer with 40 runs, followed by skipper Sumit Ghadigaonkar with 36 and Abdul Aziz with 31.

Nepal’s bowling unit shared the spoils, with Kamal Singh Airee, Aakash Chand, Vivek Kumar Yadav, and Basir Ahmad all taking two wickets each, while Adil Alam chipped in with one.

Nepal and Assam will face off in the fourth T20 practice match on Sunday evening, while the final and deciding game of the series will be played on Monday.