Scotland beat Nepal by two runs in Kirtipur on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, in an ICC Cricket World Cup League 2 tri-series match that swung on the tightest of margins at the Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground.

The victory kept Scotland second in the League 2 standings with 34 points from 28 games, while Nepal remained seventh among eight teams on 18 points from 24 matches. For both sides, the result mattered well beyond one afternoon. The top four teams after this cycle go directly to the World Cup Qualifiers, and those finishing lower risk losing ODI status.

Nepal had gone into its final home series of this League 2 cycle with reasons for belief. The side had won four of its eight home matches in 2024, had won ten out of twelve matches in Kathmandu during the 2019 to 2023 cycle, and had beaten Scotland in Kathmandu in 2023. It also had won both warm-up matches against Scotland A before this round, while Scotland arrived after a convincing victory over Namibia on April 12, 2026.

The narrow finish in Kirtipur continued a pattern that has made this matchup hard to shake. Scotland had already beaten Nepal in Dallas and Dundee during the current campaign, and the Dundee game had also gone down to the wire. In that match, Richie Berrington scored 102 and Michael Leask made 96 off 62 deliveries as Scotland defended 324, with Nepal bowled out for 321 while chasing the target.

For Nepal, the pressure was not only about one defeat but about the weight of a whole cycle coming to a close at home. The home crowd at Kirtipur had seen Nepal build a strong record in recent years, yet the team also knew that League 2 points now carry direct consequences for the next stage of World Cup qualification and for ODI status. That made every over in the Scotland match part of a much larger ledger.

Nepal's playing XI featured Binod Bhandari, Aasif Sheikh, Arjun Kumal, Rohit Paudel, Dipendra Singh Airee, Aarif Sheikh, Gulsan Jha, Karan KC, Nandan Yadav, Sandeep Lamichhane and Lalit Rajbanshi. Scotland's predicted lineup included George Munsey, Finlay McCreath, Brandon McMullen, Michael English, Richie Berrington, Matthew Cross, Michael Leask, Mark Watt, Brad Currie, Jack Jarvis and Oliver Davidson.

Scotland's tour preparations also included Azhar Ali as a consultant. The former Pakistan batter played 97 Tests and 53 ODIs and scored more than 7,000 Test runs. He said he was excited to work with a talented Scotland side.

The result leaves Nepal with less room for error as this League 2 cycle moves toward its finish, while Scotland's narrow escape in Kirtipur strengthens a position built on consistency rather than comfort. In a series where the margins are measured in runs, that can be the difference between moving on and falling behind.