Kathmandu, Aug. 19 -- The Nepali men's senior team was handed their third straight defeat in the Top End T20 Series in Darwin, Australia, on Monday, as they went down to Melbourne Stars Academy by 31 runs while chasing 176 runs at TIO Stadium.

A 120-run partnership for the second wicket between Thomas Rogers and Blake Macdonald saw Melbourne Stars forget the pain of an early wicket.

Their skipper and opening batsman Campbell Kellaway had departed for 2 off 3 in the third ball of the first over by Sompal Kami. However, his partner Rogers stayed with Macdonald to build up a quality partnership, contributing 44 off 30 and 74 off 47, respectively.

By the time Macdonald departed as the second wicket in 13.1 overs, Melbourne Stars were at 12...