The Indu Barma-led Nepal were up against Italy, led by skipper Emilia Bartram, in the 4th match at the Gahanga B Ground, Rwanda, in the ICC Women’s T20I Challenge Trophy 2026. Rwanda defeated Vanuatu by 41 runs in the 3rd game earlier in the day.
The Nepal openers, Samjhana Khadka and Bindu Rawal, got their side off to a steady start with a 19-run opening partnership after skipper Indu Barma won the toss and opted to bat first. Pasindi Kanankege broke the stand by sending Samjhana Khadka (16 off 13 balls) back to the pavilion in the 4th over of the innings to provide the first breakthrough for Italy.
A 24-run 3rd wicket partnership between skipper Indu Barma and Puja Mahato took them past the 50-run mark. Ilenia Sims got the big scalp of the opposition skipper, Indu Barma (10 off 14 balls), in the 12th over of the innings, providing the 3rd breakthrough for her side.
The Italian bowlers bounced back, chipping away with wickets at regular intervals. However, they weren’t able to wrap up the Nepali innings, courtesy of a spirited 25-run partnership for the 9th wicket between Riya Sharma (2* off 5 balls) and Puja Mahato (48* off 45 balls), with Mahato contributing a major chunk of the partnership towards the backend. The partnership also took them past the 100-run mark as Nepal ended their innings at 112/8 in their quota of 20 overs.
Puja top-scored with the bat for her side, with her knock including a couple of boundaries and a maximum, scoring at a strike rate of 106.66. Bindu Rawal (15 off 26 balls) was the only other batter to enter the double digits with the bat for Nepal. The innings included as many as 10 extras. Skipper Emilia Bartram (3-0-21-3) led from the front with the ball for her side. Chathurika Mahamalage (4-0-21-1), Ilenia Sims (4-0-21-1), Alexia Kontopirakis (3-0-14-1), and Pasindi Kanankege (2-0-10-1) were the top performers with the ball for Italy.
Chasing a target of 113, the Italian batters succumbed to the scoreboard pressure, as they were unable to keep up with the asking rate. As a result, they found themselves at 13/4 inside the power play. Emma Moore joined Chathurika Mahamalage at the crease, and the duo led some sort of a recovery with a much-needed 15-run partnership for the 5th wicket.
Rubina Chhetry broke the stand by sending Emma Moore back to the pavilion for an 8-ball duck in the 11th over of the run chase, providing the 5th breakthrough for Nepal. Another collapse followed, and despite a gritty 17-run partnership for the 8th wicket between Pasindi Kanankege (12 off 15 balls) and Chathurika Mahamalage (22* off 46 balls), Italy were bundled out for 62, with 8 balls to spare, falling 50 runs short of the target.
Rubina Chhetry (2.4-1-4-4) broke the back of the Italian batting department. Manisha Upadhayay (4-1-6-1), Rachana Chaudhary (4-0-11-1), Kabita Kunwar (3-0-12-2) and Riya Sharma (4-0-24-1) were the top performers with the ball for Nepal. Rubina Chhetry was awarded the Player of the Match for her sensational spell with the ball.
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