KATHMANDU: Nepal national cricket team registered an emphatic 81-run victory over Oman national cricket team in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 match at the Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground on Tuesday.

Defending a target of 257, Nepal bowled out Oman for 175 in 39.5 overs, riding on an outstanding five-wicket haul from Gulsan Jha and disciplined bowling from the rest of the attack.

Earlier, opting to bat first after winning the toss, Nepal were bowled out for 256 in 49.5 overs.

Opener Aasif Sheikh anchored the innings with a brilliant 94 off 97 balls, hitting seven fours and five sixes. He narrowly missed out on a century but registered his 14th ODI half-century.

Aasif shared a crucial 123-run partnership for the second wicket with Arjun Kumal, who continued his impressive start to international cricket with a composed 48 off 87 balls.

Nepal’s middle order, however, struggled to fully capitalize. Binod Bhandari was dismissed for a duck, while captain Rohit Paudel managed just 9 runs. Dipendra Singh Airee contributed 33, and Gulsan Jha added 17.

A late flourish from Aarif Sheikh, who smashed 43 off just 24 balls with four sixes, pushed Nepal past the 250 mark.

He ended the innings in style with three consecutive sixes in the final over before being dismissed on the last ball.

For Oman, Nadeem Khan was the pick of the bowlers with three wickets, while Shakeel Ahmed and Hassnain Shah claimed two each.

In reply, Oman never really got going despite brief contributions. Hasnain Ul Wahab scored 29, Hammad Mirza made 34, and wicketkeeper Vinayak Shukla top-scored with 36.

Gulsan Jha turned the game decisively in Nepal’s favour, picking up 5 wickets for 38 runs in his nine overs, dismantling the middle and lower order.

Karan KC, Nandan Yadav, Sandeep Lamichhane and Dipendra Airee chipped in with one wicket each.

Oman lost wickets at regular intervals and were eventually bowled out well short of the target, handing Nepal a comfortable win.

The result marks a strong comeback for Nepal against Oman at Kirtipur, where the visitors had dominated recent encounters, including a 102-run DLS victory earlier in the series.