England held their nerve to earn a thrilling four-run victory over Nepal, avoiding a huge scare in their T20 World Cup opener.

Nepal threatened an upset right to the last ball, but Sam Curran brilliantly held his nerve in the final over to stop them from getting over the line.

England lost quick wickets early on, with Phil Salt (1), Jos Buttler (26) and Tom Banton (2) dismissed as they fell to 57-3 at the start of the seventh over.

However, Jacob Bethell plundered 55, with Harry Brook adding 53 to steady the ship and push them through as others fell for single figures.

An unbeaten 39 off 18 balls from Will Jacks helped to drag England to 184-7, but they struggled against Nepal's threat.

Though Liam Dawson (2-21) dismissed Aasif Sheikh for seven early on, Nepal were flying as Kushal Bhurtel (29), Rohit Paudel (39) and Dipendra Singh Airee (44) pushed them to 126-4 midway through the 16th over.

With 10 needed in the final over, the brilliant Lokesh Bam, who finished on 39 not out, needed a six to secure victory off the final ball, but only managed one as Curran brilliantly defended England's lead in the last over.

Nerve held.

An outstanding final over from @CurranSM

Match Centre: https://t.co/9xbDJHvEPC pic.twitter.com/F7yaQ3tEwh

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) February 8, 2026

Data Debrief: Nepal fall just short

Lokesh dropped to his haunches at the finish, but he was deservedly applauded for keeping Nepal in it until the very end.

It was an impressive chase from them overall, with both their first and third-wicket partnerships setting new records for the nation in the tournament; Bhurtel and Sheikh combined for 37, while Airee and Paudel posted 82 runs between them.

England have won 11 of their last 12 T20Is (L1), including each of their last eight, equalling their longest winning run in the history of the format (W8 from May 2010 to January 2011).