International Cricket

Nepal vs PNG WCL2 Kirtipur: Lalit Rajbanshi Five-For Recap

Anjali Iyer 19 May 2026 Updated 19 May 2026 ~4 min read ~750 words

Lalit Rajbanshi bowling left-arm spin at TU Kirtipur for Nepal

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Lalit Rajbanshi's 5 for 32 against Papua New Guinea at the TU Cricket Ground in Kirtipur was the kind of left-arm-spin spell that wins associate cricket games on slow, gripping surfaces. The Kirtipur pitch played to type: turn from over 8, grip increasing through the middle phase, and a deeper-than-usual rough patch outside the right-hander's off stump from over 25. Rajbanshi exploited every inch. Nepal bowled PNG out for 158 and won the chase comfortably. Here is the spell map and the PNG collapse.

Rajbanshi's opening spell

Rajbanshi opened the bowling from the Kirtipur Mountain End and bowled a 7-over first spell that produced 3 wickets for 18 runs. His new-ball plan was to flight the ball outside off, deny scoring, and let the grip do the work. The first wicket fell in his second over: Tony Ura's drive away from the body caught the toe-end of the bat and looped to slip. The second came in the fourth over, an LBW to the slider that beat Lega Siaka's sweep. The third was the wicket of the captain Assad Vala, who tried to come down the wicket to a flighted ball and was stumped by Aasif Sheikh.

The second-spell completion

Rajbanshi returned in the 27th over with PNG on 84 for 4 and trying to rebuild. His second spell of 3 overs brought 2 more wickets and conceded 14 runs, finishing his quota with 10 overs, 1 maiden, 32 runs, and 5 wickets. The fourth wicket was Charles Amini caught at deep mid-on attempting a slog over the leg side. The fifth, the most important of the spell, was the wicket of the set batter Sese Bau, who skied an attempted reverse-sweep that looped to short third man. The PNG resistance ended at 132 for 8, and the tail folded inside two more overs to finish at 158 all out in the 38th over.

The PNG batting collapse pattern

PNG's batting on the day was undone by three repeating failure modes against Rajbanshi's left-arm finger-spin. First, the drive away from the body that caught the toe-end. Second, the sweep against the slider that produced LBWs and bowled dismissals. Third, the attempted slog over the leg side that lofted into deep fielders. The middle order's rebuilding partnership of 31 between Bau and Vala briefly slowed the collapse, but the wicket of Vala in the 14th over removed the senior batter and the lower middle order could not sustain the chase. The total of 158 was 35 to 50 runs below par on this Kirtipur surface.

Nepal's chase

Nepal chased the 159-run target in 36.2 overs with 6 wickets in hand. Kushal Bhurtel and Asif Sheikh put on 56 for the opening wicket, with Sheikh moving on to 47 off 54. The middle order built around Rohit Paudel's patient 32 off 48, and the chase was sealed by Dipendra Singh Airee's late cameo of 18 off 11. The PNG bowling attack lacked the spin variety to match Nepal's, with their off-spin pair conceding 6 runs an over across their combined 16 overs.

What it means

Lalit Rajbanshi's 5 for 32 confirms his role as Nepal's lead spinner across all formats. The Kirtipur surface played to his strengths, but the wider lesson is the depth of Nepal's spin attack with Sandeep Lamichhane's leg-spin at the other end. PNG's loss further dents their WCL2 campaign, and the team must regroup quickly for the next fixture. Nepal's qualifier pathway is back on track with two valuable points and a clearer net run rate position.