Just before the Tihar festival, the ACC U-19 Women’s Championship winning team received a round of accolades and cash prizes as the government, Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) and sponsors Wai Wai provided cash rewards to the players.
Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal awarded the squad with the highest cash prize in the history of Nepali cricket at his official residence at Baluwatar. PM Nepal awarded the 14 players with a cash prize of Rs 100,000 each, while coach Samson Jung Thapa was given Rs 50,000 along with letter of appreciation. Team manager Amrita Paudel received letter of appreciation.
At the function, organized by the Ministry of Youth and Sports (MoYS), Minister for Youth and Sports Gopal Tiwari Nepali, Assistant Minister Chanda Chaudhary, Chief Secretary Madhav Prasad Ghimire, government secretaries, office-bearers of the National Sports Council and CAN officials were present.
A day later on Nov 5, CAN rewarded players with Rs. 15,000 each while Wai Wai rewarded Rs. 51,000 to the team for their achievement.
Skipper Nary Thapa, Rubina Chhetri, Mamata Thapa, Sarita Magar, Sita Ranamagar, Sonu Khadka, Shraddha Aryal, Arati Bidari, Manisha Rawal, Indu Barma, Trishna Singh, Anjali Chand, Nima Tamang and Gita Chudal were the players of the Nepali squad.
Defending champions Nepal had successfully defended the title remaining unbeaten in the tournament held in Singapore from October 4-12.
Speaking on the occasion, PM Nepal lauded the Nepali team for their achievement. “The feat you have achieved amid the political instability and gloomy environment has made every Nepali proud.”
Stating that cricket was slowly catching the interest of the Nepali public, PM Nepal stressed the need of well-equipped physical infrastructure for the development of cricket in the nation. “The physical infrastructure for cricket is insufficient and the concerned stakeholders –MoYS and the National Planning Commission– should work toward this end,” PM Nepal said, adding, “If we could construct three international stadiums, it could help boost sports tourism in Nepal.”
He also expressed his commitment to providing every possible support for the construction of an international cricket stadium at Mulpani. PM Nepal also said the government was ready to provide all necessary support for hosting the South Asian Games (SAG) in Nepal in 2013 and taking Nepali cricket to the ICC world cup. “A taskforce has been formed for the purpose,” he added.
He also suggested MoYS to take special steps to identify sporting talents from the grassroots level.
“This team consisting of players from Taplejung, Baitadi, Rupandehi and Nepalgunj portrays the whole Nepal,” PM Nepal said. “Common interest, discipline and faith are essential for victory, and they are lacking in Nepali politics.”
He also wished success to the Nepali women´s cricket team in the 16th Asian Games (Asiad) to be held in Guangzhou, China from November 12-27. He also expressed his best wishes on the occasion of Tihar and Chhath festivals.
Minister for Youth and Sports Nepali, Assistant Minister Chaudhary and secretary of MoYS Sushil Jung Bahadur Rana also spoke on the occasion.