May 10, Kathmandu – Under the leadership of Sushil Kedia, Vishwabharti School (DAV) clinched the title of the Asian E-Learning ‘Jaykumar Nath Shah Memorial’ Interschool U-16 Cricket Tournament for the second consecutive time. In a rain-affected final at the Mulpani Cricket Ground, DAV defeated Nepal Police School by 7 wickets under the DLS method to claim the championship. Along with the trophy, DAV received a cash prize of NPR 150,000, while the runners-up Nepal Police School earned NPR 75,000.
DAV had also won the title in the tournament’s inaugural edition. Chasing a target of 102 runs set by Police School, DAV had reached 17 runs for 2 wickets in 4.1 overs when rain interrupted the play. The match was later reduced to 12 overs on Wednesday, with DAV’s revised DLS target set at 70 runs. DAV successfully achieved the target in 10.5 overs, losing 3 wickets, securing the championship for the second straight year.
In DAV’s victory, Arush Zhale scored an unbeaten 26 runs off 30 balls with 3 fours. Virat Jaiswal contributed 22 runs off 23 balls, while Prasiddha Jaisi added 6 runs. Satyam Basnet was dismissed for 2, and Kamal Shahi remained not out with 3 runs. Shahi was named ‘Pick Point Player of the Match.’ For the Police School, Priyanshu Kishor Raut and Sunil Thakur each took one wicket. Nepal Police School batted first after winning the toss on Tuesday, posting 101 runs for 8 wickets in their allotted 20 overs.
Police’s Mohammad Abbas Safi made an unbeaten 33 runs, with contributions from Shyam Babu Thakur (12) and Ashutosh Mishra (10). DAV’s Kamal Shahi bowled 4 overs for just 11 runs, taking 4 wickets. Kunjun Acharya and Prasiddha Jaisi each took 2 wickets. Organized by the Kathmandu District Cricket Association, the tournament commenced on May 2 and featured a total of 24 teams.
James School’s Swaraj Chaulagain was declared the Emerging Player of the Tournament, having scored 103 runs and taken 12 wickets. He received a cash prize of NPR 5,000 and a special gift sponsored by Locker Room. Rajdeep Acharya of the Military Residential College was awarded Best Batsman after scoring 239 runs in 4 matches. He also received a cash prize of NPR 5,000, a bat from Locker Room, and a special gift from Dark Fantasy.
Kunjun Acharya of DAV was named Best Bowler with 13 wickets, while Prasiddha Jaisi, also of DAV, was selected as the overall Best Player, having scored 273 runs and taken 7 wickets, playing a vital role in securing the title. Jaisi received a cash prize of NPR 10,000 and a cricket kit bag from Locker Room. Attractive awards were also presented to players excelling in other categories.
The closing ceremony was graced by Meena Limbu Tripathi, Director of Asian E-Learning Pvt Ltd, who was the chief guest. Special guests included Paras Khadka, Secretary of the Nepal Cricket Association (CAN), and Bimom Dangol, Brand Officer of eSewa, among others. The event was chaired by Divakar Ghale, President of the Kathmandu District Cricket Association.
In her address, Chief Guest Tripathi expressed gratitude to the successful organizers and committed to continuing sponsorship in the future. She extended congratulations and thanks to all participating teams, players, coaches, and guardians. Divakar Ghale, President of the Kathmandu District Cricket Association, thanked the principal sponsor, co-organizers, officials, and all guests for their support in making the tournament successful and pledged to sustain school-level cricket development through such competitions in the coming years.
