Nepal hit hosts Kenya to lift T20 trophy

Visiting Nepal are winners of the five T20 International Series that ended at the Nairobi Gymkhana, yesterday evening.

The Nepalese won the toss and opted to bat first, putting 175 runs for the loss of seven wickets in 20 overs in Game Five.

The victory saw them triumph in the closely contested series, with a 3-2 aggregate.

Gyanendra Malla of Nepal was voted man of the match with 59 runs off 44 balls.

Nepalese captain Sandeep Lamichhane was voted man of the series for his bravery in wicket taking.

In reply, Kenya had 144 runs for the loss of seven wickets in 20 overs. Nehemiah Odhiambo had a game high for the hosts with 37 runs off 22 balls.

Despite the narrow loss, Kenya's captain Shem Ngoche was optimistic that they will bounce back during the three One Day International (ODI) series to be contested by the two nations from at the same venue, from Friday.

"It's always disappointing to be on the losing end, but we had great positives in the match. Indeed, the series was closely contested. It was more of us finding our rhythm as a team, which will be beneficial for our future games," Ngoche told Standard Sports.

While presenting the trophy to Nepal, Sports Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed congratulated the teams for their impressive performance in the series, saying staging the series is a big statement that cricket is fully back in Kenya.

"The game means a lot to us because Kenya is a sporting nation. We look forward to many more of such matches," Mohamed said.

Kenya's head coach David Obuya said he believed his charges did well in the innings.

"We look forward to bounce back in the ODI series," Obuya said.

Obuya has said his mission is to guide Kenya back to ICC's top ten ranking, a point they were in 2003.

The former national team Wicket Keeper, however, warns that it will take time for his objective to be accomplished since Kenya has dipped in the sport following their absence in international cricket. They had never played on home soil for close to four years.

The former right-handed batting talisman early this month led Kenya to an impressive finish in the ICC Challenge League B matches in Jersey, where Kenya won four of the five battles to retain her status in the tournament.

Kenya's marksman in the 2003 ICC World Cup in South Africa firmly believes the country has the potential to qualify for a sixth World Cup after the 2011 stint in India.

Since his appointment as head coach, Obuya has handled several high profile matches including the ICC World Cup qualifiers in Rwanda and the ICC Challenge League B games in Uganda and Jersey.