**Nepal Captain Rohit Paudel Dedicates Historic Victory Over West Indies to Martyrs of Gen Z Protest**
Nepal made cricket history on Saturday by stunning the world with a remarkable 19-run victory over the West Indies. This win marked Nepal’s first-ever triumph against a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC), a milestone achievement for the Asian minnows.
During the post-match presentation, Nepal captain Rohit Paudel dedicated the victory to the martyrs of the recent Gen Z protests. “I want to dedicate this award to the martyrs back home who participated in the protest,” Paudel said. “The last month has not been great for us, so if we can give a little bit of happiness to the people of Nepal, I think that would be great.”
### Context Behind the Gen Z Protests in Nepal
Earlier this month, Nepal witnessed large-scale protests and demonstrations following a nationwide ban on numerous social media platforms. The protests escalated into violent clashes, with public officials targeted and government and political buildings vandalized.
These upheavals eventually led to the resignation of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli along with several other government ministers. Following his resignation, Sushila Karki was appointed as the interim Prime Minister of Nepal. The protests gradually subsided by September 13.
### Nepal Stuns West Indies at Sharjah Cricket Stadium
In the highly-anticipated match held at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium, West Indies won the toss and elected to field first against Nepal, an Associate Member team. The West Indies bowlers managed to restrict Nepal to a modest total of 148/8.
Nepal’s innings, anchored by middle-order contributions, saw early setbacks as West Indies pacer Akeal Hosain dismissed Kushal Bhurtel for 5 runs, and Jason Holder removed Aasif Sheikh for 3 runs, reducing Nepal to 12/2 in the fourth over.
However, captain Rohit Paudel (38 off 35 balls), Kusal Malla (30 off 21 balls), and Gulsan Jha (22 off 16 balls) steadied the innings to help Nepal reach a competitive score. Holder finished with impressive bowling figures of 4-20, while Bidaisee took 3-29.
Chasing 149 runs for victory, West Indies had a disastrous start when Kushal Bhurtel ran out opener Kyle Mayers early for just 5 runs off eight balls. Nepal’s bowlers continued to apply relentless pressure on the former T20 World Champions, making it difficult for them to build partnerships.
Nepal’s disciplined bowling restricted the West Indies to 129/9 in their allotted 20 overs. Kushal Bhurtel took two wickets, while Dipendra Singh Airee, Karan KC, Nandan Yadav, Lalit Rajbanshi, and Rohit Paudel each claimed one wicket.
This historic victory not only boosted Nepal’s standing in international cricket but also brought a sense of pride and joy to a nation recently weathering political turmoil.
https://www.freepressjournal.in/sports/we-can-give-little-bit-of-happiness-nepal-skipper-rohit-paudel-dedicates-win-over-west-indies-to-martyrs-of-gen-z-protest
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