Nepal moved into the final of the Men’s T20I Asian Games Qualifier on Sunday after beating Oman by eight wickets at the Singapore National Cricket Ground, chasing down 95 in just 9.2 overs. Oman’s exit sent them into Monday’s third-place playoff instead, leaving the winner of the Hong Kong-Malaysia semifinal as the side they will face next.

The result came quickly once Nepal’s chase found its rhythm, even after Oman had managed to put early pressure on the batting order. Nepal were 27 for 2 inside two overs, but Lokesh Bam and Rohit Paudel steadied the innings with an unbeaten 68-run stand that ended the match long before the target began to look safe.

Bam finished 44 not out off 26 balls and Paudel was 21 not out off 20, the pair turning what had looked like a twitchy pursuit into a controlled finish. That response mattered because Oman had been bowled out for 94 in 19.4 overs after choosing to bat, and Nepal’s attack had already done the damage by stripping away the top order inside four overs.

Karan KC led the way with 3 for 20, while Sompal Kami and Sandeep Lamichhane took two wickets each. Shahab Alam, Kushal Malla and Dipendra Singh Airee added one apiece as Oman slumped to 9 for 3 early in the innings, with Shuaib al Balushi, Nawed al Balushi and Mohammed al Balushi all gone before the innings had settled.

Oman did find resistance through captain Sufyan Mehmood, who made 38 off 42 balls, with Zubair al Balushi contributing 22 off 14 and Abdul Jalil adding 16 off 14. But the innings never fully recovered from the early collapse, and Nepal’s bowlers kept the pressure on until the side was all out well short of a score that could test a chase.

That context is why this win carried so much weight for Nepal, who arrived in the qualifier viewed as tournament favourites and carrying a squad packed with players from the last ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. For Oman, the semifinal also underlined how far a youthful group still has to go: Mehmood was the lone experienced campaigner, and the rest of the side were making their tournament debuts. Nepal now move on with the momentum of a one-sided semifinal behind them, while Oman must wait until Monday to learn which of Hong Kong or Malaysia will stand between them and third place.