Gulshan Jha and Sompal Kami have been roommates for five years. In Season 3, that partnership has become Karnali Yaks’ finishing combination: 12 runs plus three catches in a low-scoring defence, then 28 not out in the season’s highest chase, dropped by the wicketkeeper in the final over and still standing at the end, with a push-up celebration. Gulshan is 20 years old, the youngest player ever to play ODI cricket for Nepal, and the first Nepali to score a fifty and take five wickets in the same one-day international. Karnali are top of the table at 2–0, and their finisher is the captain’s roommate.
Two Games: Three Catches, Then 28 Not Out
Match 3 against Janakpur Bolts on 27 October was a defence. Karnali posted 132/9 after Janakpur won the toss and chose to field, and Janakpur were bowled out for 113 in 19.3 overs, losing their last five wickets for 24 runs. Gulshan made 12 off 9 balls with 1 four and 1 six at 133.33, caught by Mayan Yadav off Moeen Ali — one of Moeen’s two wickets in a 4-0-19-2 spell, the other being Mark Watt for 1 off 5. With the ball Gulshan bowled a single over for 14 runs without a wicket. In the field he took three catches, not two as one video description claims: Trit Raj Das for 1 off Sompal Kami, Anil Sah for 11 off Nandan Yadav, and Abhisekh Tiwari for 20 off Hussain Talat. Player of the Match was Unish Bikram Singh for 3/22, not Gulshan, with Talat taking 3/26, Nandan 2/13 and Sompal 1/5.
Match 6 against Biratnagar Kings on 29 October was the chase. Biratnagar posted 186/7 after Karnali won the toss and chose to field, and Karnali won by 4 wickets with one ball left — 187/6, not 190 as two reports claim, and one ball left, not two. Gulshan finished 28 not out off 21 balls with 2 fours and 2 sixes at 133.33, in an unbroken 64-run seventh-wicket stand with captain Sompal Kami, who made 62 not out off 32 with 4 fours and 3 sixes. Karnali were 57/5 in the 7th over, then 123/6 when Pawan Sarraf fell at the end of the 14th over, after a 66-run sixth-wicket stand with Sompal, and 165/6 at the end of the 18th over, needing 22 off 12. Gulshan’s own path ran 11 off 8, then 18 off 15, then 25 off 19. In the final over, bowled by Biratnagar captain Sandeep Lamichhane with 8 needed, Sompal took 1, Gulshan 2, then 1, then wicketkeeper Lokesh Bam dropped Gulshan, then a later mistake by Bam on a run gave an extra run, and Sompal finished with 2 runs off each of the next two deliveries. Gulshan did not bowl in Match 6, and his one fielding contribution was a catch: Charith Asalanka for 3 off Sompal. Sompal took 4/33, not 4/43 as one report claims, including Bam caught-and-bowled, and was Player of the Match. A photo caption after the win reads that Gulshan Kumar Jha does a push-up celebration after defeating Biratnagar Kings. Across the two games, the arithmetic reads 40 runs, one over bowled, and four catches.
Karnali in Every Season, Under Sompal
Gulshan has played for Karnali Yaks in all three seasons, under captain Sompal Kami throughout. Season 1 in 2024 ended in the Eliminator: fourth place with 8 points after seven league matches, edging Kathmandu Gurkhas on net run rate. In the Eliminator on 18 December 2024 against Chitwan Rhinos, Karnali posted 175/6 and beat Chitwan’s 154/9 by 21 runs. Gulshan made 0 off 3 balls, bowled by Kushal Malla — but took four catches as a fielder: Hassan Eisakhil for 1 off Sompal, Bipin Rawal for 18 off Sompal, Ravi Bopara for 53 off Nandan Yadav, and Santosh Karki for 8 off Zeeshan Maqsood. Earlier in that season, against Biratnagar, he made 0 off 1, lbw to Basir Ahamad, as Karnali’s 133/10 beat Biratnagar’s 126/8 by 7 runs.
Season 2 in 2025 has three verified innings and no full-season batting aggregate, so this feature prints none. On 28 November 2025 against Biratnagar, he made 20 off 10 balls, lbw to Lamichhane, as Karnali’s 160/3 lost by 3 wickets, with Gulshan and Sompal taking 2 wickets each with the ball. On 30 November 2025 against Kathmandu Gorkhas, he made 49 not out off 22 balls with 6 fours and 3 sixes, Karnali’s top score, as Karnali’s 149/7 lost by 5 wickets. On 7 December 2025 against Janakpur Bolts, he made 19 off 20 balls, caught by Anil Sah off Maaz Sadaqat, as Karnali’s 129/9 won by 3 runs. His Season 2 bowling series row reads 10 overs, 92 runs, 3 wickets, best 2/20, economy 9.20. Karnali’s final Season 2 league position is not verified in the sources checked, so it is not printed, and neither is any Season 1 Qualifier 2 participation.
The Teenager Who Did Both in One ODI
Gulshan Kumar Jha, born 17 February 2006 in Malangwa, Sarlahi, is a left-handed batter and right-arm medium bowler, 20 in Season 3, wearing shirt number 15 for Nepal. ODI debut came on 17 September 2021 against United States at Al Amerat in Oman, making him the youngest player to play ODI cricket for Nepal and the third-youngest ODI player of all time at 15 years and 212 days. He had been named in the squad for the August 2021 Oman tour but did not play against Papua New Guinea before debuting against the USA. T20 international debut followed on 19 February 2022 against Philippines at Al Amerat, in the 2022 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Global Qualifier. Domestic breakthrough had come earlier that year with Nepal Police Club in the Kathmandu Mayor’s Cup final in February 2021, where he was named Player of the Match with 4/22 from 7 overs against Nepal Army’s top order.
On 18 September 2024, in a Cricket World Cup League 2 game against Oman at King City in Canada, promoted to No. 6, he scored 53 off 35 balls with 3 fours and 5 sixes, then took 5/47 in 10 overs with 2 maidens, including a maiden 48th over containing the wicket of Jay Odedra. His victims were Aqib Ilyas for 29, Aayan Khan for 9, Shoaib Khan for 26, Fayaaz Butt for 8, and Odedra for 5. Nepal still lost by 1 wicket, Oman chasing 221 in 49.5 overs, and Gulshan was named Player of the Match despite the defeat. He became the first Nepali to score a fifty and take five wickets in the same ODI, and the 24th player in ODI history to do it; one outlet frames it additionally as the first player under 20 in ODI history to do it, at 18, and that qualifier is that outlet’s framing. Second ODI fifer came in May 2026 at TU Ground, Kirtipur, against Oman: 5/38 in 9 overs, his best ODI figures, with victims Hasnain Ul Wahab for 29, Aryan Bisht for 6, Jiten Ramanandi for 3, Vinayak Shukla for 36, and Hassnain Shah for 14, as Nepal won by 81 runs — their first League-2 win over Oman at TU Ground after three straight defeats. He was in Nepal’s squad for the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup as its youngest player at 18, was selected in January 2026 for the 2026 squad, and played against West Indies on 15 February 2026 at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, lost by 9 wickets. In the September 2026 ACC Men’s Premier Cup final against UAE, he made fifty off 36 balls with 4 sixes and 3 fours, his sixth ODI fifty, passing 1,000 ODI runs after starting the match on 963. A knee injury cost him the third round of the 2024–2026 Cricket World Cup League 2 in June 2024. Aggregates conflict by snapshot date, so this feature prints only the dated 8 February 2026 snapshot: 40 ODI matches for 726 runs at 26.88 with 4 fifties and a top score of 67 not out, 52 T20 internationals for 630 runs at 21.00 with 1 fifty and a top score of 54, 34 ODI wickets with a best of 5/47, and 29 T20 international wickets with a best of 3/31.
What Remains: Roommates, Five Years On
Sompal Kami’s post-Match 6 words carry the relationship. At the press conference, he said everyone in the camp believed they would win the match, that Gulshan and he had been roommates for five years, that they understood each other well, and that he knew what kind of player Gulshan was — even when they needed 17–18 runs in the final six overs, he was confident they could win. Sompal also described Gulshan as one of Nepal’s best T20 players, saying an innings like that could not be played every day in T20 cricket, but when he did, everyone should boost his confidence, that he was happy to have seen him grow into a good player, and that he hoped Gulshan would become a big name in Nepali cricket in the future. Sompal added, in the same press conference, that he played cricket because he loved it, that playing out of fear meant he could not enjoy it, and that he enjoyed every ball and every moment. Angelo Mathews, after the same match, said the fielding was weak and catches win matches. He praised Sompal and Gulshan, and said Nepali cricket was in good hands. No direct Season 3 quote from Gulshan himself exists in text sources (a video interview exists without a transcript, and nothing is quoted from it here), and no Season 3 quote from coach Gyanendra Malla was found. Karnali are the only team this season with 2 wins from 2 matches, top of the table on 4 points. Remaining fixtures are Match 10 against Kathmandu Gorkhas on Monday 2 November (12:30 PM NST), Match 16 against Sudurpaschim Royals on Friday 6 November, Match 19 against Pokhara Avengers on Monday 9 November, Match 23 against Lumbini Lions on Thursday 12 November (5:00 PM NST), and Match 27 against Chitwan Rhinos on Saturday 15 November.
FAQs
What did Gulshan Jha do in Matches 3 and 6?
Match 3: 12 off 9 balls, one over for 14 runs, and three catches as Janakpur were bowled out for 113. Match 6: 28 not out off 21 balls in an unbroken 64-run stand with Sompal Kami, finishing the 187 chase with one ball left after being dropped by the keeper in the final over.
What is Gulshan Jha’s ODI record?
On 18 September 2024 against Oman, he scored 53 off 35 balls and took 5/47 in 10 overs, becoming the first Nepali to score a fifty and take five wickets in the same ODI, and the 24th player in ODI history to do it. His second ODI fifer was 5/38 against Oman at TU Ground in May 2026.
How young was Gulshan Jha’s debut?
He debuted in ODIs on 17 September 2021 against United States at 15 years and 212 days, the youngest player to play ODI cricket for Nepal and the third-youngest ODI player of all time.
What did Sompal Kami say about Gulshan?
After Match 6, Sompal said Gulshan and he had been roommates for five years, that they understood each other well, and that even needing 17–18 runs in the final six overs, he was confident they could win. He also called Gulshan one of Nepal’s best T20 players.
