Lumbini Lions vs Janakpur Bolts: NPL 2026 Match 14 Preview

Updated Tue, 3 Nov 2026

The last two NPL champions meet in Match 14: Lumbini Lions (2025) v Janakpur Bolts (2024) on Thursday, 5 November at 12:30 PM NPT (12:15 PM IST) at the TU Ground, Kirtipur. Live score and scorecard: match page.

Form guide

Form before Tuesday’s games. Both teams play on 3 November: Janakpur v Biratnagar (preview) and Lumbini v Pokhara (preview).

Lumbini: one full game, one big win

Lumbini have only completed one match, and it was one-sided. Kishor Mahato took 4 for 14 and Sher Malla 3 for 11 as Sudurpaschim were bowled out for 87, then D’Arcy Short hit 40 off 18 in a chase that took 9.5 overs. That win gives them a net run rate of +4.599, far ahead of every other side. Captain Rohit Paudel has faced only three balls all season.

Janakpur: Moeen Ali and the spinners

Moeen Ali has 98 runs and 6 wickets. Captain Harmeet Singh also has 6 wickets at 10 runs each, and Rahul Yadav has 5. Janakpur have bowled Kathmandu out for 115 and defended 147 against Pokhara. With the bat, Trit Raj Das (67 runs) and Abhishek Tiwari (44 off 27) support Moeen.

The key contest

Spin against spin. Both sides win by strangling the middle overs: Malla and Mahato for Lumbini, Moeen and Harmeet for Janakpur. Lumbini’s batting is largely untested this season, so how Short and Paudel handle Moeen’s off-spin early could decide it.

What is at stake

This is the first meeting between two teams who expect to be in the top four. Every result shifts the race, and the playoff scenarios page updates after each game. Our NPL winners list has the history of both titles.