Quick Facts
- Match
- Pokhara Avengers vs Karnali Yaks, Match 19, NPL Season 3
- Date and venue
- Monday, 9 November 2026, TU International Cricket Ground, Kirtipur
- Result
- Pokhara Avengers won by 63 runs
- Pokhara total
- 217 for 3 in 20 overs — Yuvraj Samra 102 off 48 balls, Kushal Bhurtel 62 off 39
- Karnali total
- 154 all out in 18.3 overs — Pawan Sarraf 32, Mahedi Hasan 3 for 24
- Player of the match
- Yuvraj Samra
- Points
- Pokhara move to 2 points from five matches; Karnali stay on 4 points from five matches
Pokhara Avengers finally have a win in Nepal Premier League Season 3. On Monday, 9 November 2026, they beat Karnali Yaks by 63 runs in Match 19 at the TU International Cricket Ground in Kirtipur, defending a towering 217 for 3 by bowling Karnali out for 154 in 18.3 overs. The result ended a four-match losing streak that had left Pokhara bottom of the table without a point, and it came on the back of the finest batting performance of the season so far.
Samra’s century sets up the win
The day belonged to Yuvraj Samra. The 19-year-old Canadian opener, playing only his second match in the league, smashed 102 from 48 balls with 10 fours and six sixes, reaching his fifty in 23 balls and his hundred in 45. It was the first century of Season 3, and it turned a match Pokhara desperately needed to win into a statement.
Pokhara won the toss and chose to bat, and Samra set the tone from the start. He put on 27 for the first wicket with Mahedi Hasan, then built the innings around a 136-run stand with captain Kushal Bhurtel that lasted 68 balls. By the time Samra was dismissed in the 16th over, caught by Ariful Islam off Mark Watt with Pokhara on 163 for 2, the platform was already enormous.
Bhurtel and Karunaratne finish the job
Bhurtel played the supporting role superbly. His 62 from 39 balls, with seven sixes and no fours, was his third half-century of the season, and it kept the pressure on Karnali long after Samra's departure. The pair took Pokhara past 100 in 11 overs and past 150 in the 14th, and the innings never lost momentum.
Chamika Karunaratne provided the finish. The Pokhara captain smashed an unbeaten 35 from just 11 balls, with three fours and three sixes, as Pokhara added 38 runs in the final two overs. Sunny BK stayed with him on 3 not out from six balls, and the total of 217 for 3 was the first 200-plus score of Season 3 and the second-highest total in NPL history.
Karnali's bowling figures told the story of the afternoon. Sompal Kami was their most effective bowler, taking 2 for 24 from his four overs, including both Mahedi Hasan and Bhurtel, while Mark Watt took 1 for 34. The rest of the attack went around the ground: Jishan Alam conceded 24 runs in a single over, Nandan Yadav went for 41 in four, and Gulshan Kumar Jha gave away 30 in two overs with four wides.
Karnali’s chase falls away
Chasing 218 was always a mountain, and Karnali's reply began brightly before falling away. Ariful Islam struck 24 from 13 balls with two fours and two sixes, and Deepak Dumre smashed 22 from just seven balls with three sixes, but both were gone early and the asking rate never came down.
Karnali were 72 for 5 after eight overs, and from there the chase drifted out of reach. Pawan Sarraf fought hardest, making 32 from 31 balls, but he found no partner to stay with him. David Miller managed only 7 from nine balls, Mark Watt made 8 from 14, and the middle order folded in a rush.
Mahedi leads the bowling effort
Mahedi Hasan led the bowling effort with 3 for 24 from his four overs, removing Watt, Dumre and Miller. Dhananjaya Lakshan took 2 for 24, including Jishan Alam for a first-ball duck and Sarraf, while Bhurtel claimed 2 for 39 and Bipin Khatri took 2 for 39. Karunaratne went wicketless for 21 from two overs, and Sunny BK bowled a single over for five.
The strangest dismissal of the match belonged to Karnali captain Sompal Kami. On 21 from 19 balls, he was given out obstructing the field after hitting the ball twice, a rare sight in any league and a moment that summed up Karnali's afternoon. Surya Tamang added 13 from eight balls and Yuvraj Khatri was left unbeaten on 1 as Karnali were bowled out for 154 with nine balls unused.
The numbers underline how complete the win was. Pokhara scored at 10.85 runs an over; Karnali managed 8.32. Pokhara lost three wickets; Karnali lost all ten. The 63-run margin was the biggest of Pokhara's season and only the second time in Season 3 that a side had passed 200, after Biratnagar Kings did it earlier in the tournament.
What the result means
For Pokhara, the win changes the shape of their season. They had lost their first four matches — to Sudurpaschim Royals by six wickets on 28 October, to Janakpur Bolts by nine runs on 1 November, to Lumbini Lions by eight wickets on 3 November, and to Chitwan Rhinos by 30 runs on 6 November — and the defeats had cost them their captain, with Karunaratne taking over, and forced a rethink of the squad, with Samra signed after three straight losses.
Samra's arrival has transformed them. He scored a fifty in his first outing and now a century in his second, and his 102 was the difference between a competitive total and a match-winning one. He was named player of the match, and the century also made him the fourth player overall to score a hundred in the NPL, after Andries Gous and Adam Rossington had done it for Pokhara in earlier seasons.
The win also repaired some of the damage to Pokhara's net run rate, which had been the worst in the league at minus 1.679 before the match. Two points from five matches still leaves them at the foot of the table, but they are no longer cut adrift, and two wins from their remaining two matches would take them to six points and into the playoff conversation.
Karnali, meanwhile, stay on four points from five matches, and their playoff hopes have taken a serious blow. They won their first two matches of the season, beating Janakpur Bolts by 19 runs on 27 October and Biratnagar Kings by four wickets on 29 October, but they have now lost three in a row — to Kathmandu Gorkhas by four wickets, to Sudurpaschim Royals by 39 runs, and now to Pokhara by 63.
Their remaining fixtures leave little room for error. Karnali face Lumbini Lions on Thursday, 12 November and Chitwan Rhinos on Sunday, 15 November, and winning both would take them to eight points. Losing either would leave them relying on other results, and their net run rate will have taken another hit from this heavy defeat.
Pokhara's run-in looks kinder on paper. They face Biratnagar Kings on Thursday, 12 November and finish against Kathmandu Gorkhas on Sunday, 15 November. Two wins would give them six points, and after the way they dismantled Karnali, neither fixture will hold any fear for them.
The result also tightens the race behind the top two. Lumbini Lions lead the table on seven points, Kathmandu Gorkhas and Sudurpaschim Royals have six each, Chitwan Rhinos have five, and Janakpur Bolts, Karnali Yaks and Biratnagar Kings all sit on four. With nine league matches still to play, no side is safe yet, and every heavy defeat now carries a cost in net run rate as well as points.
For the crowd at Kirtipur, the match delivered what the first three weeks of the season had promised and only occasionally produced: a century, a 200-plus total, and a result that mattered. Samra's hundred was the first of the season, and it arrived in the match Pokhara could least afford to lose.
Attention now turns to the evening match, with Chitwan Rhinos facing Kathmandu Gorkhas at 4:30 PM NST on Monday. Kathmandu can move to eight points with a win and put real pressure on Lumbini at the top, while Chitwan can draw level with them on seven. After the afternoon Pokhara produced, the evening game has plenty to live up to.
Pokhara's wait is over. Four defeats, a change of captain, a new overseas signing, and finally a performance that matched the talent in their squad. If Samra keeps batting like this, their season may only just be starting.
FAQs
Who won the NPL Match 19 between Pokhara Avengers and Karnali Yaks?
Pokhara Avengers won by 63 runs. They scored 217 for 3 in 20 overs and bowled Karnali Yaks out for 154 in 18.3 overs at the TU International Cricket Ground in Kirtipur on 9 November 2026.
How many runs did Yuvraj Samra score against Karnali Yaks?
Yuvraj Samra scored 102 off 48 balls, with 10 fours and six sixes. He reached his fifty in 23 balls and his hundred in 45 balls, and was dismissed in the 16th over with Pokhara on 163 for 2. It was the first century of NPL Season 3.
Who took the most wickets for Pokhara against Karnali?
Mahedi Hasan took 3 for 24 from four overs, dismissing Mark Watt, Deepak Dumre and David Miller. Dhananjaya Lakshan took 2 for 24, Kushal Bhurtel 2 for 39 and Bipin Khatri 2 for 39.
What does the win mean for the NPL points table?
Pokhara move to 2 points from five matches for their first win of the season after four straight defeats. Karnali stay on 4 points from five matches after their third consecutive loss, with two league matches left against Lumbini Lions and Chitwan Rhinos.
Comments