Airee’s Nerve of Steel Secures One-Run Thriller as Nepal Edge Past UAE in T20 Qualifier Epic

In a match that will be etched into the folklore of Associate Cricket history, Nepal secured a breathtaking one-run victory over the United Arab Emirates in the Super Six stage of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Asia & EAP Qualifier. The contest, played out under the floodlights at the Al Amerat Cricket Ground, was a rollercoaster of momentum, a tense, brutalist drama that swung violently from one dugout to the next, culminating in a final-over masterclass by the man of the hour, Dipendra Singh Airee, whose icy composure delivered a spectacular, match-sealing hat-trick of run-outs and a caught-and-bowled dismissal to crush the UAE’s audacious late charge. The triumph not only reaffirmed Nepal’s credentials as serious contenders in the region but also underscored the unpredictable, high-stakes nature of qualification cricket, a tournament where a single run can mean the difference between global glory and a crushing return home.

Nepal, having won the toss and elected to bat first on a pitch that appeared to offer reasonable value to the stroke-makers but with a hidden bite for the spinners, began their innings with a solid, cautious foundation. Openers Kushal Bhurtel and Aasif Sheikh navigated the powerplay with an exemplary mixture of defense and calculated aggression, steering the ship past the initial turbulence of the UAE’s disciplined new-ball attack led by Junaid Siddique. Their partnership, an essential fifty-plus stand, was precisely the platform the captain, Rohit Paudel, had hoped for, offering the middle order a chance to launch. However, as is often the case in high-pressure T20 cricket, the introduction of the slower bowlers brought a change in fortunes. The UAE attack, leveraging the subtle variations of the surface, tightened their lines, applying the chokehold in the middle overs. The dismissal of Bhurtel for a well-made 28 was the trigger, and though Sheikh stood firm, anchoring the innings with a vital, measured half-century of 51 runs off 47 balls, wickets began to fall with an unsettling regularity. Skipper Paudel (20) and Kushal Malla (10) failed to convert their starts into substantial scores, leaving Nepal’s total looking dangerously modest. A late, electrifying cameo from Gulshan Jha, who hammered a quick-fire 14 runs off just five deliveries, provided the necessary final impetus, pushing Nepal to a competitive, yet chaseable, total of 140 for six in their allotted twenty overs. The collective effort of the UAE bowlers, with Haider Ali’s economical spell standing out, ensured Nepal could never truly break the shackles and reach the commanding 160-plus mark they had initially targeted.

The pursuit of 141 for victory was always going to be a tense affair, and the UAE chase mirrored Nepal’s innings in its measured beginning but surpassed it in sheer drama. They suffered an early jolt with the loss of their explosive captain, Muhammad Waseem, who fell cheaply, caught off the bowling of the reliable Sompal Kami. This early setback, however, only paved the way for a sensational recovery led by the in-form Alishan Sharafu. Sharafu, blending power and timing with remarkable maturity, stitched together a crucial 81-run partnership with Jonathan Figy, whose patient 19 off 29 balls allowed his partner the freedom to attack. Sharafu was particularly brutal on anything short or wide, striking five towering sixes and three fours in a blazing 58 off 40 balls that had the UAE firmly on track. At this stage, with the required rate under control and Sharafu well set, the match seemed to be firmly tilting in the favour of the Gulf nation.

Yet, Nepal’s strength lies not just in their star players, but in their unwavering collective spirit and their ability to summon match-winning moments from unexpected quarters. The pivotal moment arrived with the ball back in the hands of Dipendra Singh Airee. First, he broke the ominous partnership by claiming the wicket of Figy, and then, in a devastating shift of momentum, he snared the prized scalp of Sharafu himself, caught attempting one big shot too many. This dual blow initiated a dramatic, terrifying collapse for the UAE middle order, who suddenly found themselves grappling with the relentless pressure applied by Nepal’s spin duo of Airee and the ever-threatening Sandeep Lamichhane, the latter contributing with a crucial wicket of his own. From a comfortable 83 for one, the UAE suddenly found themselves scrambling at 96 for six, their victory charge derailed and the target of 141 now feeling like a mountain.

The contest refused to be extinguished, however, thanks to the sheer tenacity of Dhruv Parashar. Entering with the team in deep trouble, Parashar launched a counter-offensive of brutal efficiency. Hitting a rapid 32 off just 18 deliveries, laced with glorious boundaries and vital maximums, he single-handedly dragged the UAE back into the game, whittling the daunting equation down to a nail-biting 10 runs needed off the final over. The responsibility fell to Airee, Nepal’s all-rounder, to bowl the decisive twentieth over, a moment that separated the champions from the contenders. Under unimaginable pressure, and having just been hit for a massive six by Parashar in the previous over, Airee displayed the mettle of a seasoned veteran. After a single and a dot ball, he dismissed Parashar, caught on the boundary, with a flighted delivery, a moment of profound relief for the Nepali side. What followed was a stunning display of fielding and supreme game-awareness: two successive run-outs off the final two deliveries, Haider Ali and Zahid Ali, both caught short of their crease by sharp work behind the stumps and in the field, sealed one of the most remarkable finishes in recent Associate Cricket history. The UAE, needing two runs off the final ball, ended up short by a solitary run, collapsing to 139 for nine. Dipendra Singh Airee, with three wickets for a parsimonious 22 runs from his four overs, alongside his electric glovework that forced the run-outs, was rightly adjudged the Player of the Match, a testament to his exemplary performance under the most extreme pressure. The victory was a demonstration of Nepal’s deep-rooted passion and their tactical brilliance in defending a modest total, showcasing a never-say-die attitude that promises to carry them further in the crucial qualification journey