Nepali U-19 cricket team will take on Kuwait on Friday in the ACC U-19 Elite Cup to be held in Malaysia from Friday to May 11. Nepal U-19, which hopes to win the tournament and qualify to the ICC U-19 World Cup, expect to build momentum from the very first match.
Nepali U-19 team led by coach Jagat Tamata and captain Bhuwan Karki includes experienced players like Avinash Karn, Ram Naresh Giri, Rahul Pratap Singh and Nishchal Pandey along with captain Karki. Karki, Karn and Giri were the part of Nepali U-19 team that played the ICC U-19 World Cup held in Australia in 2012. Singh was the member of Nepali U-19 team that finished second in the ACC U-19 Elite Cup 2011 held in Thailand while Pandey was the member of the team that finished second in the ICC U-19 World Cup Qualifiers 2011 held in Ireland.
“The team is mentally and physically tough and ready to take challenges,” said coach Tamata.
“There are no big names and popular players in the team. There are average players but they are ready to take the charge,” said Tamata. “Captain Bhuwan (Karki) will spearhead spin bowling while Avinash (Karn) will lead the pace attack. We have batsman like Amit Shrestha in the team. We have to put up around 200 runs on the board in every match to win and we are prepared for it,” he added.
He said that the only aim of the team is to win the tournament and qualify for the World Cup.
Skipper Karki described the tournament as an opportunity and a challenge for him as a captain. “We have new talents in the team but we are ready to take every challenge. Our aim is not less than to qualify for the U-19 World Cup,” said Karki.
The winner of the ACC U-19 Elite Cup will progress to U-19 World Cup 2014. If the UAE reaches the final of the ACC U-19 Elite Cup, the other finalist will progress to the World Cup, as the Arab nation is pre-qualified as the host of the 2014 tournament.
Nepal is slatted in group-B of the tournament along side Qatar, Bahrain, Malaysia and Kuwait. Nepal will take on Kuwait on May 3 in its first match of the tournament and lock horns with Qatar on May 5. Nepal will clash with Bahrain on May 6 before playing the final group stage match against Malaysia on May 8.
Nepal had won the ACC U-19 Elite Cup in 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2007 while it had finished as runner-up in 1999 and 2011. Afghanistan had defeated Nepal in the final of the last edition held in Thailand in 2011.