Nepal came agonizingly close to a historic upset against the two-time champs what does that near-miss tell us about how the “minnows” are evolving in T20 cricket?
After the Netherlands and USA, team from the Himalayan country dream of a huge victory before Sam Curran rescued Harry Brook & Co
Nepal almost pulled off an upset but fell short by just 4 runs against England in the T20 World cup. (AP0
With 10 runs needed from six balls, Nepal stood on the precipice of cricketing immortality—a nation of mountains daring to topple giants. This was Sunday’s crescendo to a weekend that had already shattered assumptions. The Netherlands had nearly ambushed Pakistan. The United States had bloodied India. Now Nepal, cricket’s underdogs, had England by the throat. Sam Curran managed to break free of the noose, to let England breathe and live for another day.
As the sun set over Mumbai on Sunday, one thing crystallised: the 2026 T20 World Cup would spare no one. Not Pakistan. Not India. And certainly not England, who escaped with their pride just about intact but their invincibility shattered.
The giants had been warned. The minnows had teeth.
In a thrilling chase of 185, Nepal fell agonisingly short by just four runs in a contest that swung one way then the other till the very end. With six needed off the final ball of the game, Lokesh Bam, who had given Nepal hope with some belligerent late-order hitting, could only manage a single of Sam Curran’s low full toss.
