Nepal beat the Australian Capital Territory 144 to 140 in the Top End T20 Series on 26 August 2026. The match finished at 09:30 local time, and it was Nepal who came out on top after an open contest. Both sides went for it from the start, and that approach held until the final delivery.
ACT sit eighth on two points from six games, one win and five losses. Nepal are just above them in seventh, with four points from four wins and four losses. By then the standings told you something about how tight this tournament is running — two points separate the bottom four teams.
The hosts have been in the thick of close finishes lately. They lost 130 to 131 to Northern Territory Strikers yesterday, and before that 86 to 88 to New Zealand A. Three of their last five matches have gone by a single run or fewer, and here's the thing — it shows a team that can't afford another slip.
Nepal's recent run has been sharper. They thrashed Hobart Hurricanes Academy 154 to 115 on 24 August, then dropped a narrow one to Bangladesh High Performance XI. Before that they lost 122 to 123 to Northern Territory Strikers, and before the international fixtures they played Netherlands and Namibia in what looked like warm-up games.
This result shifts the gap between seventh and eighth down to two points. ACT have not won since the opening round, while Nepal have taken two from three since returning from international duty. The hosts will need to find a way to close out games if they want to climb away from the bottom of the table.