NED vs NEP T20 World Cup 2024: Nepal Lose Match, But Their Fans Win Hearts in Dallas

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Nepal lost to Netherlands by 6 wickets in a Group D match of the T20 World Cup 2024 on Tuesday (June 4), but their energitic supporters at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas, Texas won many hearts, including the opposition.

After a delayed start to the contest due to rain, Nepal were bunlded out by an impressive Dutch bowling attack for 106. Tim Pringle (3 for 20) and Logan van Beek (3 for 18) were the chief destructors with the ball for the Netherlands.

In response, Max O'Dowd anchored the Netherlands chase with a calm and composed half-century, carrying his bat as the Dutch survived a couple of nervy periods to reach 109/4 and win with seven balls to spare.

Earlier, Nepal top order struggled for runs on the nation's return to World Cup action for the first time since 2014, with captain Rohit Paudel (35 from 37) being the highest run-scorer.

Despite the team's failure with the bat and showers that led to delay, the supporters of the Nepal cricket team brought some life into the T20 World Cup 2024 after several matches took place in front of empty stands across USA and West Indies.

The Nepal fans were vocal throughout the match supporting their team, bringing the much needed energy and color to the competition which till yesterday's match seemed like being played behind closed doors.

The first to acknowledge the incredible support was none other than Nepal's opponent Netherlands, who took to social media to salute the opponents fans, who created a great atmosphere.

"To all the Nepal fans who turned up and supported their team whole heartedly, salute! We loved the environment in Dallas," Netherlands Cricket posted on X.

Apart from the Dutch official cricket handle, several others from the cricketing fraternity also highlighted how the Nepal fans brought some much-needed energy into an otherwise dull T20 World Cup in terms of crowds.

Indian premier off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin also took to social media during the match to acknowledge the Nepal supporters at the Grand Prairie Stadium in Dallas.

"At the moment Netherlands are outclassing Nepal in their opening fixture but the support for @CricketNep at the stadium is 🔥🔥, so good to watch 👏," Ashwin posted on X.

Former Australia cricketer-turned-commentator Tom Moody also said the support and passion from Nepal fans shows that the game is growing rapidly in the country.

"The support and passion from the Nepalese fans today in Dallas was infectious. The game is growing rapidly in Nepal, with further opportunity this young side will grow rapidly," Moody posted on X.

A picture posted by ICC also showed that fans had flocked in huge numbers for the screening of the Netherlands vs Nepal match in the capital city of Nepal, Kathmandu on Tuesday (June 4) night.

The Nepal cricket team did a lap of honour after the match in Dallas to thank the crowd, while skipper Rohit also said: "Want to thank all of them (the crowd). Was feeling like we were playing in Nepal. If we do better as batting unit, we can do better."