🏏ICC Men's T20 W C 2026: Group B, M 33: Scotland vs Nepal at Mumbai🏏

🏏Scotland vs Nepal, 33rd Match, Group C, ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026🏏

Preview

England's win over Italy ensured they joined West Indies as the two teams from Group C to qualify for the Super Eights, turning this contest between Scotland and Nepal into the tournament's first dead rubber. Both sides are already eliminated, but a victory would at least offer some consolation after campaigns filled with what-ifs.

Nepal opened their campaign by falling just four runs short of England's 184 in a spirited chase. What followed were two crushing defeats to Italy and West Indies, with recurring batting failures leaving the bowlers with too much to do. At the heart of Nepal's struggles have been their misfiring stars with Kushal Bhurtel struggling with both bat and ball while Sandeep Lamichhanne has gone wicketless since the England game. That they managed to pick up just one wicket across those two games also highlights deeper concerns within their bowling.

Scotland's campaign has been a roller-coaster right from their unexpected entry into the tournament. A defeat to West Indies was followed by a commanding win over Italy before they were brushed aside by neighbours England. Yet they'll remain upbeat considering how well they've adapted despite their limited preparation. Their spinners have excelled, claiming 11 wickets at 24.63, the most among teams to have played all their matches in India.

Nepal have enjoyed the rare luxury of playing all their games at the Wankhede, gaining both familiarity with the conditions and strong backing from fans who have thronged the stadium. The advantage, however, might still lie with the Scots. The venue has statistically favoured spinners this tournament, and Nepal's batting will face a stern test against a confident spin attack.

When: Scotland vs Nepal, February 17, 2026 at 7 PM IST

Where: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai

What to expect: The Wankhede stadium has offered 2.2 degrees of turn on average - the most amongst all venues in this World Cup so far. The first three games were won by the teams batting first while the last two were won by the chasing side, although that was largely due to Nepal posting below-par totals in both those games.

Team News

Scotland

Safyaan Sharif injured his right groin ahead of Scotland's previous game and has since been replaced by Jack Jarvis. While they have no pressing reasons to make changes to their XI, they could still use the opportunity to give their bench players a run in a World Cup fixture.

Probable XI - George Munsey, Michael Jones, Brandon McMullen, Richie Berrington (c), Tom Bruce, Michael Leask, Matthew Cross (w), Mark Watt, Oliver Davidson, Brad Currie/Zainullah Ihsan, Brad Wheal/Chris Greaves

Nepal

Like Scotland, Nepal may opt to hand their bench players an opportunity to feature in a World Cup game.

Probable XI -Kushal Bhurtel, Aasif Sheikh (w), Rohit Paudel (c), Dipendra Singh Airee, Aarif Sheikh/Basir Ahamad, Lokesh Bam/Sundeep Jora, Gulsan Jha, Sompal Kami, Karan KC, Nandan Yadav, Sandeep Lamichhane

What they said:

"If you keep listening to outside noise, it will be hard for all the players to perform in the next match. So we are keeping it outside and when the team is losing, it is very important to keep everyone very positive and we are trying to do that" - Nepal captain Rohit Paudel.

"Yeah, look, last game against England, we played in front of 50,000. And they were supporting us. So I think now we can expect probably less crowd, more noise, but to be supporting Nepal. So I think it's best of both worlds for the guys to experience that" - Scotland's Tom Bruce.

In the spotlight

It has been a peculiar tournament for Sandeep Lamichhane. Nepal's greatest cricketing export has just one wicket at an average of 94.00, with an economy rate of 9.4 - galling numbers for a seasoned wristspinner. The 25-year-old has shown no verve, and was bullied by Anthony Mosca in the defeat to Italy, with the opener carting him for three sixes, finishing with 28 off the 13 deliveries he faced from the leggie. As mentioned further up, Lamichanne has good recent form against Scotland which he could do with replicating to save what has otherwise been an abject tournament.

Mark Watt, meanwhile, will be keen to bounce back from the shellacking he received against England. His 0 for 43 from three overs contributed to Scotland's inability to fully turn the screw against their neighbours to the south, hammered over the fence three times by Tom Banton in a first over that went for 22 - an exchange that got Banton out of a funk and on his way to a match-winning 63*. Watt is a canny enough operator to not let that aberration dull his shine.

Nepal's consultant coach Nic Pothas wants his team to give their exuberant fans something to take away from this campaign•Getty Images

Pitch and conditions

Temperatures are expected to reach as high as 33 degrees Celsius in Mumbai, which will likely exacerbate the slow, turning nature of the surface that Scotland expect to encounter. That this will be an evening game in Mumbai puts chasing on the table. Though three sides have fallen short when doing so in the five matches at this venue so far - USA against India, Nepal against England and England against West Indies - there are mitigations to be found pertaining to strength of opposition and lack of intent within those examples.

Stats and trivia

• This is only the third T20I meeting between Nepal and Scotland.
• Richie Berrington is 23 runs off 3,000 in T20s
• Scotland wicketkeeper Matthew Cross is three catches away from 50 in T20Is

Quotes

"We certainly want to see a lot more thought going into how we play our cricket. We're a very energetic side, a very passionate side with a great following that have come to watch us play. So we'd like to give that following something to remember this World Cup by."

Nepal consultant coach Nic Pothas wants to give the fans something to take away from this campaign

"I actually thought the wicket played really well in Kolkata, and obviously that was our third game there too, so, you know, you back yourself to be learning quite quickly on that wicket and on that surface. So, looking ahead, it's about us adapting to conditions very quickly. We've obviously watched some games that have been here."

Tom Bruce on Scotland adjusting to new conditions ahead of their first match in Mumbai

Nepal, Scotland chase win to close out what-if tournament

Nepal are winless from three games, while Scotland have picked up one win over Italy.

Big Picture

Regrets. Scotland and Nepal will have a few.

They arrived at the 2026 T20 World Cup with little to lose. Scotland's 11th-hour entry after Bangladesh's expulsion was an unexpected boost. Nepal, meanwhile, are a nation on the cusp of nailing the big time, and what better way to signal that intent by bloodying a few noses and perhaps even sneaking out of Group C?

And yet, both will go into their meeting in Mumbai wondering what could have been. Nepal were 11 runs from 8 balls away from victory in their opening against England, while Scotland spurned 30 runs in their innings against the same opponents, which might have afforded them more room to cash in the nerves they elicited in an ultimately unsuccessful defense of 152.

A comprehensive defeat to West Indies on Sunday closed all mathematical avenues for Nepal's progression, before England's second number on their Auld enemy was to come through another sketchy situation against Italy on Monday to secure their own Super Eights spot. And so, what might have been a genuine winner-takes-all bout is anything but. Regardless of the result, both teams will be heading home.

Of course, there is pride to play for, but perhaps a bit more on Nepal's side of the ledger. Captain Rohit Paudel called for more opportunities against Full Member teams going forward, after making England sweat. Signing off with a maiden T20 World Cup win can further their push for more of a look-in. Their fans have made a compelling case in the stands.

The mullering at the hands of Italy felt like a blow to that cause, even though that should not be the case. It is counter-productive to pit Associate nations against one another to deem who is worthy of a bigger slice of pie, be that funding or opportunities against major sides, particularly when the deck is stacked against them on those grounds in the first place.

These are issues Scotland know plenty about, even if their surprise entry into this tournament is their sixth visit to a T20 World Cup. Between the 2024 T20 World Cup and this one, they had played just seven T20Is outside of qualification tournaments, and only three against a Full Member (a series against Australia in September 2024). They themselves have a statement to make on Tuesday.

Scotland beat Italy comfortably but will rue the chance to push England closer

Scotland's initial three-match residence in Kolkata featured a 73-run win against Italy, as they became the first side at this World Cup to breach 200. That was sandwiched by losses to West Indies and England, though the latter did play out in front of a crowd of more than 40,000. This will be similarly well-attended.

One of these teams will take the lead after a 1-1 head-to-head established during a tri-series Scotland hosted and won last summer, with an emphatic victory over Nepal. Their first meeting three days earlier was a low-scoring shootout which Sandeep Lamichanne seized; the legspinner taking 4 for 11 then bagging the winning run off the penultimate delivery.

As such, there is plenty of familiarity on the ground for this encounter, which will been played out on what has been a game Wankhede track. Nepal's three matches at this venue to Scotland's none gives them a sizable advantage, but their batting has not come close to replicating the heights Kushal Bhurtel, Dipendra Singh Airee and Lokesh Bam threatened to take them to against England over a week ago.

They were tentative against Italy (who chased down 124 without loss and with ease) and overawed by Group C leaders West Indies. It spoke to the standards expected that consultant coach Nic Pothas used his pre-match press conference to lament the team for "not learning fast" and making familiar errors.

Scotland, too, have errors to learn from, particularly their leg-side missteps against England when it came to the sweep shot. "The nature of the wicket [at the Wankhede] probably looks even slower than Kolkata and might take more turn," Tom Bruce said on Monday. We shall see

Form guide

Nepal: L L L W W (last five completed T20Is, most recent first)

Scotland: L W L L L

Probable Best Performers

Probable Best Batter: George Munsey

George Munsey will look to get Scotland off to a flying start inside the first six overs. The left-handed batter smashed a sensational 84 off 54 balls in the game against Italy at the Eden Gardens earlier in the tournament. Rohit Paudel will want to see the back of him as soon as possible.

Probable Best Bowler: Brad Currie

Brad Currie has been a consistent performer for Scotland with the ball in this tournament. The left-arm seamer has accounted for four wickets in three games, averaging 14. His strike rate is also an impressive 6.22. Currie's role is going to be crucial, especially inside the powerplay.