BY PRAKASH PHUYAL: Nepal is at the verge of a great cricketing future. It has proved to the world that this tiny country on the lap of Himalayas will not only be known for Mt Everest, but also for its cricketing force. Well, it might seems over ambitious from my part to say these things, but if provided with enough infrastructure and dedicated administrators, I along with thousands of cricket loving fan’s dream will surely come true.
Nepal is preparing for its entrance to Youth World Cup that is going to be held in Bangladesh in 2004. If we are to play in Youth World Cup, then we need to emerge champion of Youth Asia Cup, which is being held in Karachi of Pakistan from 14 to 27 July. It might not be a big ask for us as we are the defending champion and we are regarded as the hot favourite for the title. But let’s not be complacent as we have no idea on the players participating and their standard of cricket, as it been long since we have not played cricket with them. Junior level cricket is quite uncertain as the team which seems to be quite stronger in one tournament could be quite weak in the next as the same range of talented players might not be available. We have to be positive, no doubt, but should respect to the opponent and need to play every game as the final.
Nepal at any level is a good bowling side. The one and only problem we have is our batting. The problem in our batting is temperament. This is because the players are not used of playing long innings. Recently, India U-19 team visited Nepal. During the first two matches, batsmen were not seen positive. They just seemed to defend, and got carried away in the middle and threw their wicket without making much impact. So, the players should be positive without letting any pressure mount on them. Talking about the third match, it was a sure win for Nepal, but we lost the match as we couldn’t keep up with the mounting pressure. Players got to adapt themselves with the situation and should be prepared for this kind of pressure situation.
One of the most important problems that I felt during Kathmandu Klash was changing of players from match to match. The selectors must have firm belief on the players. We saw that a player who batted in number four in one match came and batted in number nine in the next match. So, there should be a fixed line up.
Lets hope all these things have been studied well by the players, coaches and administration and they are working to correct it.
Finally, I would like to wish the Nepali U-19 team all the best for the upcoming Asia Cup and hope that they will bring the glory back home and make all cricket lovers happier and happier.
(Phuyal, 20, is a medical student.)