Zimbabwe all-rounder batsmen Sikandar Raza scored a blistering innings of 66-ball for his 123 runs and picked up three wickets in an all-round performance that set up Zimbabwe's thumping 116-run victory over Nepal at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo. Former skipper and wicket keeper batsmen Brendan Taylor also starred with a bat with a 91-ball 100 that powered Zimbabwe to 380 for 6, their highest total in ODIs. Nepal couldn't match up to the home team's efforts as they finished with 264 for 8, which put Zimbabwe at the top of Group B. Opting to bat, Zimbabwe were off to a quick-fire start with Cephas Zhuwawo scoring a 23-ball 41 in a 77-run opening stand with Solomon Mire. Although Zimbabwe lost a few wickets thereafter, between overs 10-15, they had maintained a positive scoring rate. Taylor and Raza continued in the same vein while ensuring drying up avenues for Nepal to pick wickets. Raza was the aggressor in a partnership with Taylor worth 173 runs, which came to an end in the 49th over with the dismissal of the former. Taylor too fell soon after bringing up his hundred as Zimbabwe finished with 380 for 6. In reply, most of the Nepal batsmen got off to good starts but the pressure of the scorecard meant that they kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Sharad Vesawkar and Aarif Sheikh went on to score fifties but those knocks weren't enough to prevent Zimbabwe from clinching a huge victory.

Brief scores: Zimbabwe 380/6 in 50 overs (Sikandar Raza 123, Brendan Taylor 100; Basant Regmi 2-69) beat Nepal 264/8 in 50 overs (Sharad Vesawkar 52, Aarif Sheikh 50; Sikandar Raza 3-48, Brian Vitori 2-46) by 116 runs.