As the league stage of the Nepal Premier League (NPL) approaches its end, the games are getting exciting. And the race to reach the playoffs by finishing in the top four is also becoming more competitive and exciting.
After the Bagmati Province teams Kathmandu Gurkhas and Chitwan Rhinos won both the matches held on Saturday, the race to reach the playoffs has become interesting. It seems that the team that will reach the playoffs will have to reach the last match of the league stage to decide.
So far, after 25 out of 28 matches of the league stage, only one team, Janakpur Bolts, has secured a place in the playoffs, while three teams have already exited the playoff race. That is, Biratnagar Kings, Pokhara Avengers and Lumbini Lions have exited the league stage.
Now, there are four teams in the race to reach the playoffs by finishing in the top four. Only three places are vacant for the playoffs. And only three out of the four teams will make the playoff journey.
Chitwan Rhinos and Kathmandu Gurkhas, who won on Saturday, are also in the race to reach the playoffs. Similarly, Sudurpaschim Royals and Karnali Yaks are also close to the playoffs.
But since three of these four teams will advance and one team will be eliminated, it is interesting to compare which team will finish the league in which position and what results these teams will need in the remaining games to reach the playoffs.
Janakpur Bolts, who have played all 7 games in the league, are at the top with 10 points from 7 games. Sudurpaschim is in second place with 8 points from 5 games. Chitwan Rhinos, who have already played 7 games, also have 8 points and are in third place, behind Sudur in net run rate. Karnali Yaks, who have scored only 8 points from 6 games, have dropped to fourth place. After Chitwan defeated the top-ranked Janakpur Bolts on Saturday, Karnali, who are behind in net run rate, have dropped to fourth place.
Kathmandu Gurkhas is in fifth place with 8 points from 7 games. Now in the league, Kathmandu Gurkhas will play Biratnagar Kings on Sunday, while Sudurpaschim Royals will play Pokhara Avengers on Sunday.
Sudurpaschim Royals will play their last match against Karnali Yaks on Monday.
The first match on Sunday is very important for Kathmandu. If Kathmandu wins the match, the playoff heat will become even more exciting, while Kathmandu’s defeat to Biratnagar will determine the remaining three teams that will reach the playoffs. If Kathmandu loses, all three teams – Sudurpaschim, Karnali, and Chitwan – will reach the playoffs.
If Kathmandu wins by a good margin, the results of the remaining matches will also have to wait for the results of the remaining matches to decide which team will reach the playoffs.
Of the four teams in the playoff race, Kathmandu is under the most pressure. Because Kathmandu will not only have to win, the results of the next match will also have to come in their favor.
Information about what each team needs to reach the top four is presented here.
Janakpur Bolts
Janakpur Bolts are the first team to reach the playoffs. If they had defeated Chitwan on Saturday, Janakpur would have been sure to play the qualifiers in the top two. But Janakpur has suffered a setback after losing to Chitwan. However, Janakpur is still at the top and still has a high chance of playing the first qualifier in the top two.
To overtake Janakpur from the top two, Sudurpaschim will have to beat Pokhara on Sunday, while Karnali Yaks will have to beat Sudurpaschim in the final match on Monday. If this happens, Karnali will have to beat Sudurpaschim by at least 12 runs.
Sudurpaschim Royals
In the current situation, Sudurpaschim has two games left to play. In this case, it has both an advantage and a challenge. The advantage is that Sudurpaschim’s net run rate is also good and it is in a strong position to stay in the top two. Even if Sudurpaschim wins one of the remaining two games, it is sure to stay in the top two. If Sudurpaschim wins both games, they will reach the top spot and play the first qualifier.
The worst case scenario for Sudurpaschim is if they lose both games by a large margin and Kathmandu also defeats Biratnagar by a large margin in the last game, Sudurpaschim could fail to reach the playoffs. But for this, all kinds of equations have to be met, and looking at the current rhythm of the teams, that seems unlikely.
Karnali Yaks
Karnali Yaks are currently in fourth place with 8 points from 6 games. Of the three teams that have scored 8 points so far, Karnali has the lowest net run rate. If Kathmandu can overtake Karnali, who registered a wide victory against Biratnagar in the first game on Sunday, they will be able to overtake them.
But if Karnali defeats Sudurpaschim in the last game of the league on Monday, they will be sure of a place in the playoffs and if they win by at least 12 runs, they will also overtake Janakpur and reach the top two.
If Kathmandu Gurkhaz loses to Biratnagar Kings on Sunday, Karnali will also reach the playoffs before the last game and the position they will finish in the league will be decided after the game with Sudurpaschim.
However, there may be a setback in Karnali’s chances of reaching the top four. If Kathmandu wins their last league game by a wide margin, Karnali will know what result they need to achieve in the last game. For now, if Kathmandu scores 170 runs and wins by 30 runs, Karnali Yaks will have to overcome a 39-run or more defeat to Sudur in the last game to reach the playoffs.
Chitwan Rhinos
Chitwan Rhinos, who have played all 7 games in the league stage, are currently in third place with 8 points. The results of other teams’ matches will now be decisive for Chitwan to reach the playoffs. If Kathmandu loses on Sunday, Chitwan will also be sure to reach the playoffs by staying in the top four. The only situation where Chitwan could fall out of the top four is if Kathmandu Gurkhas batted first and scored 200 runs and won by a margin of 142 runs.
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