END OF OVER:20 | 6 Runs 1 Wkt | NEP: 114/7 (2 runs required, RR: 5.70)
- Sompal Kami8 (4b)
- Ottneil Baartman4-0-20-0
- Anrich Nortje4-0-27-1
11.10pm So that will be all from Kingstown today. In the end, Nepal were so close no matter how far, but in the end, that doesn't really matter as far as the points table is concerned, unfortunately. They are officially knocked out as South Africa go to the next stage with a perfect record. There has been a lot of support for Nepal at the grounds, and there have been a lot of you in the comments section here, and I can only imagine the heartbreak, but the Nepal players can hold their heads high at having given a team like South Africa a right run for their money. Maybe the game against Bangladesh will give them a chance at getting a win over a Full Member nation for the first time. Time will tell. As for today, in other news, New Zealand trounced Uganda for their first win of the competition and earlier in the day, the USA-Ireland game got washed out in a knockout blow for Pakistan. That will be all from us. On behalf of Madushka Balasuriya, whose report shall be up soon, Sudeep Poojari, this is Abhimanyu signing off!
11.05pm Time for the presentation ceremony.
Aiden Markram: "Very grateful to have got the win, we were not near our best tonight. Reflecting back on the game over the next few days, there will be a lot of learnings for us. We have a good pace attack and you want to back that. I thought if we got the ball in the right areas, it would be challenging for the batters. In hindsight, we should have picked another spinner. First and foremost, the way [Nepal] bowled it made it really tough for us. They put us under a lot of pressure. And maybe there was not enough conviction in our plans. [On moving from USA to West Indies] It has been a bit different, we spent the whole day almost doing nothing and there we'd be playing first thing in the morning. Moving forward some things may change. It's one of the big challenges of cricket, being open minded and adapting."
Rohit Paudel: "I think I am very proud of the unit, especially the way we bowled and batted. When we saw the wicket yesterday, we thought it would be on the slower side. When we were bowling I thought the wicket was helping the spinners so we carried on with the spinners. I think we were very close but a little far. In crunch moments we did well, I thought we fought very good. If we get more exposure to games like this, we will be on the other side [of the result]. [On the fans] I want to thank the fans for the way they have been supporting us. They come a long way, in the rain and everything, they come to support us."
10.55pm What. A. Match. Nepal were the better team in the first innings, with Bhurtel and Airee spinning a web around South Africa. Then the batters seemed to put them in control. But in the last three overs, South Africa hit back and hit back hard. Shamsi and Nortje picked three between them to leave Nepal in trouble. Sompal Kami's six in the penultimate over again got Nepal back in with a shout and when Gulsan Jha brought it down to two off two, it looked like history was there to be made. But in the end, South Africa held their nerves. A World Cup classic!
Player of the match, Tabraiz Shamsi: "Definitely relived, we came in with the goal of making it four out of four in this stage. Anywhere we go in the Caribbean, I assume that there is going to be turn. Fast bowlers did a great job in New York, but slower bowlers will have to take on the mantle. [On Nepal] I think they were brilliant, they took full advantage of the conditions. Wicket got better in the second innings, but they played a beautiful game. The huge positive is that we've been put under pressure every game and we've stood up to it every time. When this team is rolling, everyone knows their roles."
Sujoy : "Reminiscent of Bangladesh vs India in 2016. Nepal just couldn't hold their nerve like BD"
StevO: "Good luck to any team playing Afghanistan on this wicket. Honestly the way they are playing with this assistance they are walking into the semi finals!" Australia are set to play them here!
Tika Ram Basel: "Idk what to say, this is the game we could beat South Africa. Totally devastating! totally heartbroken and crying! Watching from Germany whole the night, now it's 5:00 AM. No Sleep. So so sad. Idk how can i forget this game? "
Gulsan Jha run out 6 (13m 6b 1x4 0x6) SR: 100.00
This has come down to the wire!
What a match this is! Eight needed off the last over! Gulsan Jha on strike. And he hasn't faced a single delivery yet! Baartman will look to close this out for South Africa
END OF OVER:19 | 8 Runs 1 Wkt | NEP: 108/6 (8 runs required from 6 balls, RR: 5.68, RRR: 8.00)
- Sompal Kami8 (4b)
- Gulsan Jha0 (0b)
- Anrich Nortje4-0-27-1
- Tabraiz Shamsi4-0-19-4
Nepal need 16 off 10. We are waiting for the middle stump to be fixed, after Nortje imparted some damage on it!
Kushal Malla b Nortje 1 (4m 3b 0x4 0x6) SR: 33.33
Nortje to bowl the penultimate over
END OF OVER:18 | 2 Runs 2 Wkts | NEP: 100/5 (16 runs required from 12 balls, RR: 5.55, RRR: 8.00)
- Kushal Malla1 (1b)
- Tabraiz Shamsi4-0-19-4
- Marco Jansen4-0-16-0
Aasif Sheikh b Shamsi 42 (77m 49b 4x4 1x6) SR: 85.71
The required rate is back above 6. Nepal are four wickets down. Can South Africa pull another game back from the brink in this World Cup? Or will Nepal make history?
DS Airee c †de Kock b Shamsi 6 (15m 11b 0x4 0x6) SR: 54.54
Jenish : "This is going to be a nervy watch"
SA's final card. Shamsi' last over.
END OF OVER:17 | 3 Runs | NEP: 98/3 (18 runs required from 18 balls, RR: 5.76, RRR: 6.00)
- Dipendra Singh Airee6 (10b)
- Aasif Sheikh41 (45b)
- Marco Jansen4-0-16-0
- Aiden Markram2-0-8-1
Monish Pokhrel: "Super excited to witness such a spectacular performance from Nepal. All Nepal needs to do is Rotation of strike and keep calmâŠthat will take us to historic victory."
Jansen for this over