Cricket Nepal (Archive)

Shakti Gauchan was dropped from the national squad during the ACC T20 Cup held in Kathmandu in December.

“I was bit upset to be dropped by then but I improved my form to make my comeback possible,” Gauchan had told Cricket.com.np before flying to the UAE to participate in the ICC World T20 Qualifiers.

As Gauchan scripted Nepal’s victory against Denmark on Wednesday taking four wickets including a hat-trick, he proved that he really has improved his form.

Shakti Gauchan celebrates in a footballer's style after taking hat-trick against Denmark in the ICC World T20 Qualifiers in the UAE. Photo: ICC

Gauchan gave the first breakthrough as he bowled Shehzad Ahmed in his first spell. Gauchan started his second spell in the 13th over of the innings. Paras Khadka caught Rizwan Mahmood off Gauchan in the second ball of the over. Then, Gauchan bowled Aftab Ahmed and trapped Kamran Mahmood lbw in the next two balls to complete hat-trick.

It is the first international hat-trick by Nepali bowler in men’s section in any form of the game.

“I never think about any records or stat while entering the ground. I knew it was the first international hat-trick by Nepali bowler only when our team manager Diwakar Ghale told me in the innings-break,” said Gauchan in a telephone conversation.

“The most important thing for me is the victory of my team. The hat-trick is just a cherry on cake,” he added.

Gauchan completed his bowling quota with a figure of 4-0-20-4. It is the third best bowling figure of Nepali bowler at the international level in the T20 format of the match.

Earlier, Dipendra Chaudhary had taken four wickets giving away 11 runs against Kuwait in ACC T20 Cup, 2009 and claimed four wickets against Oman giving away 19 runs in the same tournament.

“My family and well wishers supported me to make this comeback possible,” said Gauchan.

He also said that the entire team is focusing on the match againstPapua New Guinea now. Nepal is taking on PNG on Thursday.

“We have to continue the rhythm that we gained from the first two matches to beat PNG,” said Gauchan.

“It could be too early to talk about World Cup qualification. We just have to continue our rhythm and focused to win the next match against PNG,” he added.

“However, I have a dream of participating in World Cup like all my teammates have.”

Shakti Gauchan took four wickets including a hat-trick and Pradeep Airee scored blistering 65 runs off 43 balls to script consecutive victory for Nepal in the ICC World T20 Qualifiers in the UAE beating Denmark by nine wickets on Wednesday.

Denmark elected to bat first but they were all out at 82 runs in 19.1 overs.

Gauchan was the hero of Nepali bowling attack. He gave the first breakthrough to Nepal in the first ball of his first spell. He bowled Shehzad Ahmed (11 runs).

Danish top order got the start but could not turn it to big one. Michael Pedersen (13 runs) was short of the crease. Sanjam Regmi bowled opener Freddie Klokker (21 runs).

Pradeep Airee plays a shot during the ICC World T20 Qualifiers being held in the UAE. Photo: ICC

Denmark was at 58/3 after the completion of 12 overs. Nepali skipper called Gauchan for his second spell in the 13th over, which turned the match. Paras Khadka caught Rizwan Mahmood (11 runs) off Gauchan in the second ball of the over. Then, Gauchan bowled Aftab Ahmed and trapped Kamran Mahmood lbw in the next two balls to complete hat-trick.

Prithu Baskota claimed the wickets of Bobby Chawla (7 runs) and James Moniz (13 runs) while Basanta Regmi took the wicket of Bashir Shah (1 run). Raja Basit Javed was also short of the crease.

In reply, Nepal lost opener Paresh Lohani (3 runs) with 7 runs on board in the second over. However, Pradeep Airee and Sharad Vesawkar put up 78 runs partnership for the second wicket to guide Nepal to 85/1 in 12.4 overs.

Airee smacked seven boundaries and four huge sixes to score 65 runs off 43 balls with the strike rate of 151.16. Airee lofted the fourth ball of the 11th over off Bashir Shah over the head of the umpire to bring up his fifty. Airee signed off the blistering innings with a six off Pedersen.

It was the second victory of Nepal in the Qualifiers. Nepal defeated Hong Kong by 28 runs in their first match on Tuesday.

Nepal will take on Papua New Guinea on Thursday in their third match of the tournament.

Welcome to the live coverage of Nepal Vs Denmark. This is the first ever match between the two nations. The Match is scheduled to begin at 10:00 GMT, meaning it will be available for us at 1545 hrs NST.

Denmark is two places higher than Nepal, as far as ICC ranking is concerned. It was relegated from ICC World Cricket League Division 3, making it climb down to Division 4. Nepal is already in Division 4.

We also remind our viewers that Nepal defeated Hong Kong by a wide margin of 28 runs yesterday. Denmark defeated Bermuda by 7 wickets on the same day. For match report of Nepal Vs Hong Kong, click here.

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Nepal started the ICC World T20 Qualifiers campaign with a 28-run win over Hong Kong on Tuesday.

Electing to bat first at the ICC Global Cricket Academy Ground,Dubai,Nepalput up 130/6 in 20 overs as Captain Paras Khadka scored 68 runs off 62 balls. Later, Chandra Saud made his national team debut memorable taking four wickets as Hong Kong managed only 102 runs in 20 overs losing nine wickets.

Nepal lost opener Pradeep Airee (naught) in the third ball of the innings and Sharad Vesawkar (2 runs) was also bowled by Munir Dar. Opener Paresh Lohani returned to pavilion when team was languishing at 38 runs.

Skipper Khadka and his deputy Gyanendra Malla put up 56-run partnership for the fourth wicket. Malla, who got the wicket-keeping duty in the national team for the first time, scored 26 runs of 24 balls. He hit two boundaries and a six. Mehboob Alam added 13 runs. Bashant Regmi (2 runs) and Prithu Baskota (0) remain unbeaten at the crease.

Man of the match Paras Khadka played a confident innings and hit seven boundaries. He was stumped by Waqas Barkat off Munir Dar.

Dar was the pick of theHong Kongbowlers as he took three wickets.

Paras Khadka congratulated by the Nepalese coach Pubudu Dassanayake. Photo by ICC

Chasing the 131-run target on the slow wicket of the UAE, Hong Kong were stunned by Nepali pacer Chandra Saud.

Saud removed Irfan Ahmed, who has a reputation of big hitter, from the crease in the second ball of the innings. Captain Khadka introduced spinner Shakti Gauchan in the second over and he removed James Atkinson (14 runs). Then, Saud removed Munir Dar (duck), opener Babar Hayat (2 runs) and Courtney Kruger (2 runs) to keepHong Kongunder pressure. After the fine spell of Saud and Gauchan,Hong Kongwas at 28/5 in 4.5 overs.

Nizakat Khan scored 32 runs of 27 balls and Waqas Barkat added 15 runs off 15 balls. Sanjam Regmi took the wicket of Khan while Gauchan took the wicket of Barkat. Regmi claimed the wicket of Roy Lamsam (5 runs) also. Aizaz Khan (2 runs) was run out.

Hong Kong’s No 11 batsman Asif Khan remained unbeaten with 17 runs but it was unattainable target forHong Kong.

Saud finished his bowling quota with a figure of 4-0-24-4 while Gauchan’s bowling figure was 4-1-11-2. Sanjam Regmi bowled four overs and gave 18 runs to take two wickets.

“It was slow wicket. Our top order batsmen could not perform well. However, Gyanendra (Malla) and I stayed on the crease,” said Captain Khadka to Cricket.com.np on our phone call. “Chandra (Saud) bowled exceptionally well and Hong Kong never got chance to build up their innings,” he added.

Nepal will take on Denmark on Wednesday.

Nepal is opening it’s campaign to the qualification to the World Twenty20 Cup against Hong Kong at Global Cricket Academy Ground 2 in UAE. For the live update of the match, follow the following updates by the Cricket Nepal team.

In between, you can read the preview of the match and tournament preview by Binod Pandey

Paresh Lohani was playing his second international tournament when Nepali national cricket team was participating in the ICC Trophy held in Canada on 2001. Lohani was dreaming of knocking qualification door for the ICC World Cup then but Nepali team failed against Namibia in the very first match.

Lohani is still in the national squad that is participating in the ICC World T20 Qualifiers, which begin on Monday in the UAE. The qualifiers could open the door toNepalfor the ICC World T20 Cup to be held inSri Lanka.

Lohani, who made comeback in the national team recently, is upbeat again to pursue the World Cup dream.

“I’m excited and energized now, as I was in 2001,” said Lohani. “The Qualifiers is a lifetime opportunity for every players of the squad,” he added.

Nepal is the lowest rank team in the tournament participated by 10 teams.

However, the national team is all set to challenge opponents and prove its caliber. “I don’t believe in ranking. We’ll challenge our opponents. We’ll first try to reach semifinals and pursue World Cup dream there after,” said Paras Khadka, captain of the team.

In its qualification campaign,Nepalwill get Hong Kong as a first hurdle in the group stage. Nepal will lock horns against Hong Kong on Tuesday at the ICC Global Cricket Academy, UAE.

Nepal had earlier faced Hong Kong during the ACC Twenty 20 Championship held in Kathmandu on December last year. Nepal had registered a two-wicket victory in the match.

Nepal had qualified for the tournament gaining the top-three positions apart from Afghanistan during the ACC Twenty 20 Championship held in Kathmandu. Hong Kong was the finalist of the tournament.

This will be the third meeting of Hong Kong and Nepal in T20 format.Nepal had won one match while Hong Kong had won one. In the 50-over matches, Nepal has registered three wins and faced three defeats withHong Kong.

Nepal and Hong Kong are placed in group A along with Denmark, Papua New Guinea, Afghanistan, Bermuda, the Netherlands and Canada.

Two teams will qualify from the tournament.

Nepal Vs Hong Kong

T20

Asian Games 2010 – lost by 30 runs

ACC Twenty20 Championship – won by 2 wickets

50 overs match

ACC Trophy 1996 – lost by 5 wickets

ACC Trophy 1998 – lost by 6 wickets

ACC Trophy 2000 – lost by 179 runs

ACC Trophy 2006 – won by 87 runs

ACC Trophy Elite 2008 – won by 44 runs

ACC Trophy Elite 2010 – won by 118 runs

Nepal will play Hong Kong in the first match when ICC World Twenty20 qualifiers begin on Tuesday in UAE. In the ACC Twenty20, which served as the qualifiers for this tournament, Nepal and Hong Kong met in the first match, where Nepal won by a wicket.

This is the only match that can serve Nepal as an inspiration, if we analyse past performances in T20. According to the rankings, Nepal is the weakest team of the qualifiers. Most think, Nepal will be the whipping boys. However Captain Paras Khadka feels that everything is possible in T20 format and sees Nepali qualification, if his team is able to reach the second round.

Playing with Hong Kong in the first match has been beneficial to Nepal in the past. If there is continuity this time around, Nepal will have golden start to in World Twenty20 qualifiers. Nepal had defeated Hong Kong by 44 runs, in the first match of ACC Trophy 2008. Two years later, Nepal defeated Hong Kong again in the first match by 110 runs, in the same tournament.

Nepal entered the qualifiers after entering the semi finals of ACC Twenty20, in December last year. This is the biggest tournament for the team where it will play Afghanistan, Hong Kong, Netherlands, Canada, Papua New Guinea, Bermuda and Denmark. Group B consists of Ireland, Scotland, Kenya, Namibia, Uganda, Oman, Italy and USA.

Afghanistan, Netherlands and Canada are ODI nations. Bermuda has played World Cup in 2007. Nepal has lost twice to Papua New Guinea in past two matches. This will be the first test against Netherlands, Canada, Bermuda and Denmark. Afghanistan had thrashed Nepal by nine wickets in the semi-final of ACC Twently20 Cup.

3-3 teams from both the groups will play for semi-final play-off, and the top team from either group will play in the semi-final. The winner of that semi-final will qualify for the World Twenty20 to be played in Sri Lanka in September.The losing semi-finalist will play in the play-off again. Two teams will qualify for the World Twenty20.

Before leaving for UAE, captain Paras Khadka said, “We want to play World Cup, but (we) should not have big targets right away. First target is to reach second round. After that, anything can happen. There are 2-3 opportunities for qualification after reaching the second round. Everybody has a chance in Twenty20. Even a weak team can defeat a good side. We are average side.” He said that he did not believe in rankings and the team will focus on the game.

In past two months of preparation, Nepali team played 9 practice matches in Mumbai. Right after the return, they played in the Indian Ambassador’s Cup in Kathmandu and 6^th National Games in Dhangadhi, for their respective regions. Right before leaving for UAE, the squad went to Indian capital New Delhi and played 3 practice matches.

Coach Pubudu Dassanayake, who has already taken Canada to 50-over World Cup, said that the matches have helped in having real match practice for the players. “The team is upbeat going to UAE. We had a few good games and the boys got a feel of match situation.”

Shakti Gauchan and Paresh Lohani are making a comeback in the national team through this tournament. Shakti wasn’t kept in the team for last two international Twenty20 tournaments. He was removed from the team for the first time in Guanzhou Asiad in 2010. A few eyebrows were raised when he wasn’t kept in the side in December, for ACC Twenty20. Paresh Lohani had withdrawn his name from the team right before World Cricket League Division 5 in 2010, citing personal reasons.

Paresh is most likely to be certainty as an opener, with either Anil Mandal or Pradip Airee giving him company at the top of batting order. Anil looks to have edge for the spot as he scored a century in Mumbai trip and played well in New Delhi practice matches. Wicketkeeping job will be handled by Pradip Airee or vice captain Gyanendra Malla. Both are makeshift keepers.

Fast bowlers Krishna Karki and Chandra Saud have been selected in the team for the first time. One of these could bowl along with Amrit Bhattarai in the matches. Against Hong Kong, one of these two is certain to make a debut.

Note: The images used in the story is provided by ICC

“Cricket is my favorite sport”

When this line comes from the head of the country’s executive body, it means something for the lovers of the game. These were the lines, coming from Dr. Baburam Bhattarai, Prime Minister of Nepal. He was speaking at the prize distribution ceremony for the U-19 Women’s team, who recently won the ACC U-19 Women’s Championship, for the third time in a row.

“During my college days in India, I used to play a bit,” Bhattarai said. It is no secret that PM Bhattarai studied Engineering in India and is known in political circles to have good connections with Indian establishment. “I try to watch it on TV when I can. I listen to the commentary.”

“During the meeting of my party (Unified Maoists) in Sindhupalchowk last year, I stopped the meeting and watched World Cup cricket,” Bhattarai told the girls, who were receiving the biggest prize ever given to women cricketers in Nepal. Each of the title winning members of the team was given Rs 200,000.

The PM went on to say that this was a symbolic felicitation. “Win more titles, we’d felicitate you in a bigger way,” said the PM.

Prime Minister Bhattarai said that South Asia was a hub of cricket. “India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have won World Cup. Bangladesh is coming up. We should try to use the opportunity that is there.”

Terming the U-19 Women’s team as heroines, he said that ‘the country needed heroes during difficult times’ and the team had made the country ‘proud’.

At the same function, Secretary at the Ministry of Sports, Sushil Ghimire said, “the government is focusing on infrastructure building with cricket’s popularity in mind”. He explained that ground was being made in Mahendranagar due to the same reason. His logic was that the ground will link entire Far Western Region’s cricket with Uttarakhand of India and it shall help in the development of cricket in the region. This is the same ground where Cricket was played in the 6^th National Games recently. Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) and National Sports Council had received quite a bit of flak from experts and players alike, for making them play in underprepared ground and matting wickets.

In 2010, when the U-19 women’s team won the same title, the team members had received Rs 100,000 each, from then Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal. The prize has been doubled this time around. Many see it as the ‘benefit’ of having the Prime Minister and CAN President from the same party. CAN President Tanka Angbuhang is Central Committee member of the Maoist party.

Generally, the nexus of politics and sports is not considered healthy. But for the team members of U-19 Women’s team, this has yielded better fruit, at least this time.

Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai handed over cash incentives of Rs 200,000 each on Saturday to the members of the Nepali team that clinched the ACC U-19 Women’s Championship for the third consecutive time inKuwaitin February.

Nepal Government had made an announcement to reward the U-19 women’s team with cash incentive on February 16.

Handing over the awards at his official residence at Baluwatar, Prime Minister Bhattarai called the winning players ‘national heroines’.

“Our country is going through different kinds of crises, everyone is getting pessimistic. In this scenario, we are in need of national heroes and heroines,” said the PM.

“Your victory gave the country a sigh of relief as it gave us a chance to keep our heads up,” he added.

PM Bhattarai described himself as a cricket fan and said that cricket has a good scope in Nepal. “Cricket could allow Nepal to become a World Cup playing nation. The government has to keep it on its priority and the current government will try to develop the game,” said the PM.

The team captain Rubina Chhetri gave her vote of thanks to the government of Nepal. “This award will energize us to play better cricket in the future,” said Chhetri.

The government ofNepalawarded 14 players, a coach and two officials of the team.

Nepali national cricket team left Kathmandu on Saturday to participate in the ICC World T20 Qualifiers to be held in the UAE from March 13 to 24.

Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) bade farewell to the national team on Saturday amidst a function in the capital. National Sports Council Member Secretary Yuvaraj Lama and CAN President Tanka Aangbuhang gave their best wishes to the team.

Nepal, slated in the group ‘A’ of the tournament, will face the Netherlands, Canada, Papua New Guinea, Hong Kong, Bermuda and Denmarkin the group stage. Ireland, Kenya, Scotland, Namibia, Uganda, Oman, Italy and the USA are in the group ‘B’.

We talked to Nepali team before they left Kathmandu. Excerpts:

Pubudu Dassanayake, coach

We are upbeat about our participation. The team had good practice as far as matches are concerned even if we could not finish our proper training.

Paras Khadka, captain

We got good match exposures though there were some shortcomings in our training. Let’s hope CAN board will correct it in the days to come. We, all players, are prepared for the tournament now. We all want to play World Cup but our primary target is to reach semifinal and only then to capitalize chances to book World Cup spot. We are the lowest ranked team in the tournament but we don’t believe in ranking. We want to prove our caliber during the tournament.

Pares Lohani, opening batsman

This is my comeback tournament. As a senior player, I have more responsibilities. As an opener, I want to bat full 20 overs. I’ll try to rotate strikes and support the rest of the batsmen. I’ll also take calculative risks. We have enthusiasm and we’ll give our best to qualify for the World Cup.

(Lohani had pulled out his name from the team for the Pepsi World Cricket League Division 5 held in Kathmandu in February 2010 citing personal reasons. Lohani hadn’t featured in the national team ever since.)

Shakti Gauchan, spinner

I was dropped from the squad during the ACC T20 Cup but I’m happy to make a comeback. As a cricketer, I have a dream to play a World Cup before ending my career. Since wickets in the UAE are possibly flat, I could get a chance to bowl early overs.

Chandra Saud, medium pacer

It felt good to be a part of the national squad for the first time. Seniors in the team are very supportive. As an opening bowler, I’ll give my best and try to take early wickets. This is a big opportunity for Nepali cricketers to qualify for the World Cup.

Krishna Karki, medium pacer

It is going to be a challenging tournament for me as I’m in the national squad for the first time. I’ll try to prove my worth and help the team win matches.

UAE is almost like home for Umpire Buddhi Bahadur Pradhan. Since most of the ICC associate championships are played there, it has become second home for Buddhi. He is on a visit to UAE for the 13^th time, to officiate in the ICC World Cricket League Championship and ICC Twenty20 qualifiers.

Buddhi has been raising his finger in the major tournaments of non-Test playing nations as he is the one of the umpires of ICC Associate and Affiliate panel. The 37-year-old, who has been in the panel since 2004, got the experience of a lifetime last month, officiating in the three day match between ICC Associate XI and England Lions. This match, played in UAE, had a first class match status. And Buddhi ‘umpired’, for the first time, where entire England ‘Test’ team was playing. In the 18 ODIs he has officiated, all the teams were associate members of ICC.

“Matchwise, that was my biggest match,” said Pradhan, “I got to know behavior of Test nation. The Test playing countries dominate with their body language itself.”

Officiating in the practice matches for Cricket World Cup 2011 was his biggest success, he tells you. “Even if it was a practice match, the match between New Zealand and Ireland was good competition due to good pitch in Nagpur,” he said.

The umpire for 11 first class matches is officiating in World Twenty20 qualifiers for the first time. He has been present in U-19 World Cup – a biannual event – since 2006. The Women’s World Cup qualifiers in Bangladesh last year was his first international women’s tournament.

Here he had a different experience. During the qualifiers, he was officiating the match along New Zealand’s Cathy Cross in the match between Bangladesh and Japan. “While umpiring with male colleague, we used to joke during drinks break. Working with female colleague, I had to be more careful,” he said.

ACC U-15 Cup in 2000 was the first international championship for Pradhan. In the next year, ICC Trophy in Canada got him an entry in ICC. In next 10 years, he became the number one umpire in ICC’s Associate and Affiliate panel. That’s why he got an opportunity to umpire in World Cup practice matches.

“Lifestyle has changed since I became international umpire. Many recognize me as Buddhi Pradhan. I will continue umpiring till I can,” he is committed to stand in the middle of the cricket ground.

During his playing days, he was an allrounder for Gurans Cricket Club in Biratnagar. But he gave up his cricketing kit for white coat, after he found it difficult to get into district selection despite good performance.

First time he did umpiring was in 1991, officiating in Gurans Cup. He has interesting memories of this. “Initially I told the organizers, I’d officiate. But they did not pay heed. Later, I was given a chance as one umpire did not turn up. Maybe my umpiring was so good, they told me to do it for every match.”

He came to Kathmandu for Mahavir Cup in 1994, after being recommended by Shirish Upadhyay, then a veteran umpire in domestic circuit, and Prafulla Vaidya – popular cricketer of those days – to President of Mahavir Club, Diwakar Ghale. He was marked by CAN officials then.

“After the final, when I came to get my certificate, all the players of the losing finalists, Yangal Cricket Club had given me a standing ovation. Later they invited me for a party. I remember it very well,” says Pradhan.

His first step in major domestic championship was Jay Trophy in 1996. During the tournament, Sunsari batsman Basant Sharma defended a ball. It was going towards the nonstriker’s wicket. Sharma deviated the ball with his bat. Bowler appealed and Pradhan gave Sharma out, for obstructing the field. Buddhi said, “The batsman asked me how was he out. I explained. Later, Sunsari coach told him, he could only be out obstructing the field.”

His first ever international course was Umpire and Scoring Course organized by ACC in Dhaka in 1999. In 2004, during the ACC umpiring course in Nepal, Sri Lankan umpire Peter Manuel told Buddhi, “You have good possibilities. You should work hard.” Pradhan remembers. Another noted umpire, K T Francis also praised him saying ‘Nepal has such good umpire’. Enough to boost this Nepali. In 2009, in World Cricket League Division 6, Pradhan officiated along World’s number one umpire, Simon Tauffel.

It’s difficult to say when this umpire from associate panel would be able to do that. But if that happens again, it would be a wonderful achievement for Buddhi and Nepali Cricket.

What do you expect Nepali Cricket Team to carry when it is traveling to New Delhi, as a part of its preparation for ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier? Memento for the hosts? Yes, Team Nepal will carry that. Cricket Association of Nepal has prepared that. Just that it forgot to get team jersey for all the players.

This perhaps sums up the preparation of Nepali team, for the World Cup qualifier, so far. There is a feeling among players that the cricket association has taken the entire preparation very lightly, although they do not want to go on record to tell you this. This is the biggest stage Nepali cricketers have ever played. Out of 16 association ICC members that play in this tournament, two will qualify for the ICC T20 World Cup. Statistically speaking, Nepal has a possibility to play along the elites of the game.

Asked about whom Team Nepal plays in Delhi, skipper Paras Khadka says, “I have no idea. I hope good players turn up against us, making us compete.” This is another worry, not even captain knowing whom the team is playing against. Makes you feel for the cricketers, who perhaps traveled more than many trekkers who visit Nepal during this season. They’ve actually spend around a fortnight on the road (sometimes on the railroads) in last month and a half. The amount of traveling and matches they’ve played in recent days is likely to have effect on their physical strength.

Paras Khadka minces no words when asked about the preparation. “Preparation has been bad, to be honest,’ he says, adding “We haven’t trained for a single day, after the final squad of 14 was picked for the qualifiers. The preparation hasn’t been what it should be.”

Since the start of February, the members of this team has traveled to Mumbai, played in Indian Ambassador’s Cup in Kathmandu and played in the National Games for their regional teams. That is a lot of matches in just over a month’s time. It is likely that the strength level of players have gone down and fitness suffered.

Apparently, the team captain was not consulted, but was informed about Indian Ambassador’s Cup, that was played in the second half of February. This wasn’t a part of preparation schedule that Coach Pubudu Dassanayake had submitted and was agreed upon by Cricket Association of Nepal. Thereafter there was the National Games, played on matting wickets. If you ask the players about their experience on mats, they do not say much. The timing definitely has not been perfect for all these matches.

But then, not everything has been bad about all these matches. “Players were able to play in a match situation. They were able to build innings, which is a positive,” says Khadka. “They were not trying to hit every ball for six, which is an improvement.”

Pubudu Dassanayake confirms, “They were able to adjust to match situation, which is a plus. However, we haven’t had much time to review how much our preparation has been effective.”

Some players say Coach’s plan hasn’t been implemented much. Some go to the extent of saying that CAN merely agreed to the plans but never gave an opportunity to execute them. Some are happy with the mental side of preparation.

“There is certain kind of toughness in the players now. This is the change that I’ve felt,” says Sanjam Regmi, the offspinner, and the mainstay of the team. Khadka agrees, “There has been an improvement in the players. I, myself have felt that my performance has improved by 20 percent.” The matches against teams in Mumbai have also given an opportunity to the players to understand their roles. They now know what is expected of them. Sharad Veswakar, who was looked out of sorts during ACC T20 Cup has found runs flowing with his bat, scored two hundreds at Chris Gayle like speed and audacity. Paresh Lohani, who has just made a comeback in the national side, has runs under his belt and is likely to first choice opener. Another comeback kid, Shakti Gauchan looks in control with his left-arm spin. In fact, for captain and coach, it would be a tough choice on whom to leave out, while selecting the playing XI.

However, question still lingers on the timing of the domestic matches if playing on mat and uneven outfield will prove any good in UAE.

“Given the choice, I would not have played the National Games, as it took away time from our training” says Paras. “But I don’t decide on that. We had obligation to play and I am happy that at least we had some match practice.

Team Nepal goes to Delhi for more practice. Cricket fans can only hope the quality of opposition is good and our boys play to win.

Armed Police Force finished at the top in two out of two cricket finals, taking both the men’s and women’s title at the 6^th National Games.

In the final, APF men’s team defeated Central Region by 6 wickets, while the women’s team defeated Eastern Region by 28 runs. This was the first time APF women’s team played in nationals. It was formed only a year ago.

Women's APF team after winning gold at 6th National Games (in Mahendranagar)

At the Covered Hall grounds, Central Region won the toss and posted 144 runs. APF chased it own with an over to spare.

For APF, Paresh Lohani scored 38 off 23 deliveries, with 2 sixes and 5 fours. Sharad Veswakar and Gyanendra Malla added 27 and 22. Towards the end, Mehboob Alam blasted 21 off 14 deliveries. For Central Region, Hasim Ansari took 2, as Nischal Pandey and Naresh Raj Giri took one each.

Earlier, Rajesh Pulami scored 43 for Eastern Region. Anil Mandal scored quick 38 in 27 balls and Hasim Ansari scored 24. Basant Regmi continued his form with ball, taking 4 wickets for 16 runs. Amrit Bhattarai took 2 and captain Paras Khadka managed a single wicket.

In the other final on the day, APF women’s team posted 106 for 6. Halfway through the innings, the score was 45 for no loss. Sita Ranamagar scored 47 runs. Madhu Thapa added another 27.

Bowling for Eastern Region, Anuradha Chowdhary took 2wickets.

Chasing less than run-a-ball, Eastern region managed 78 in 20 overs, losing 7 wickets. APF’s Rubina Chhetri took two wickets for 11, after 4-over spell. Prema Gurung scored the highest 16 runs for Eastern Region. Kavita Gautam and Anuradha Chowdhary scored 14 and 10.

Photo courtesy: Bikram Giri

Armed Police Force are going to have two title clashes in cricket on the same day. Both the teams from APF, Men’s and Women’s have made it to the finals in cricket at the 6^th National Games. In Men’s APF are to face Central Region.

In the first men’s semi-final, Central Region defeated Western Region by 27 runs.

Buoyed by Binod Das’ 30 ball 56, Central Region posted 121 in 19.5 overs, as Anil Mandal posted 22. Das thrashed his way to half century with 6 sixes and 3 fours. National U-19 player Rajesh Pulami scored 11. Western Region Bijay Thapa bowler took 3 wickets, as Lal Bahadur Adhikari managed two scalps.

Chasing just over run-a-ball, Western Region could not manage to keep pace with required run rate and mustered 94 runs, losing 8 wickets in 20 overs. Naresh Raj Giri and Nischal Pandey took 3 and 2 wickets to manage breakthrough at regular intervals. First innings hero Binod Das added a scalp too. For Western Region batsman Fazlur Rehman scored 28. The only other notable contribution was from Bijay Thapa, who managed 18 not out.

In the second semi-final of the day, Armed Police Force defeated Far Western Region by 20 runs.

Chasing a relatively difficult target of 150 runs, Far Western Region faltered and managed 129 runs in 19.1 overs. Binod Bhandari scored the highest 47 runs for Far Western. That came off 24 balls, including 3 fours and 4 sixes. Pradeep Airee scored 31 off 22. Naresh Budhayer scored patient 11, off 19 deliveries. Basanta Regmi was pick of the bowlers with 3 wickets, with Paras Khadka taking 2. Mehboob Alam also took 2.

Earlier, APF won the toss and posted 149 for 8, choosing to bat first. Sharad Veswakar continued his good form scoring 34 off 32 deliveries. Basanta Regmi blasted 31 off 14 and remained at the crease till the end. Captain Paras Khadka pushed along with 29 runs. For Far Western Region, Rajendra Bam took two wickets.

Women’s

Armed Police Force made it a double celebration day with women’s team entering the title contest. APF women’s team defeated Far Western team by 4 wickets.

Far Western won the toss and posted 87 for 9, at the end of 20 overs. Roshani Bohora was the top scorer with 35, Chetana Bohora made 12. Almost all the APF bowlers bowled well, as Neera Rajopadhyay, Binu Budhamagar and Sarita Magar took two wickets each. U-19 national team player Sonu Khadka took one wicket.

Chasing a target that required less than 5 an over, Sarita Magar showed her allround skills scoring 21 runs, highest for APF team. Madhu Thapa added 19 runs to the tally. Neera and Karuna Bhandari both unbeaten with 11 runs each.

Chetana Bohora and Asha Shaki took two wickets before APF overhauled the target 18.3 overs. Anjali Chand took one wicket.

APF women’s team will face face Eastern Region in the final. Meanwhile, Eastern Region defeated Central Region 40 runs in the other semi final.

Batting first, Eastern Region scored 112 for 7 in allotted 20 overs, with National U-19 team members Anuradha Chowdhary, Mamata Chowdhary and Kavita Gautam scoring 25, 24 and 23.

In reply, Central Region managed 72 for 7, as Kavita came back with good all round show, taking 3 wickets. Saraswati Chowdhary took 2. Opener Shobha Ale scored 34 for Central Region. She waged the lone battle as Eastern Region bowlers tightening the noose around Central.

The final of both men’s and women’s will be played on Friday. The match to decide 3rd place will also be played on the same day.

Armed Police Force entered the semi-finals in the Men’s T20 at the 6^th National Games as Sharad Veswakar continued to dazzle with bat, winning the second consecutive match by a thumping margin.

Batting first, APF posted 149 for 6, thanks largely to Veswakar’s 74 off 54 balls with 5 sixes. In reply, Western Region could just manage 43, as Paras Khadka opened the bowling to snare 4 wickets. His fellow bowling opener Mehboob Alam managed 3 wickets for 3 runs in his 4-over spell. For Western Region, only Akash Gupta could manage double figures, with 21 runs to his credit. There was hardly any competition in the match as half of Western Region team was back in the pavilion with 10 runs on the board in 4^th over. Western Region was 8 down for 18, compared to APF’s first wicket stand of 20.

Sharad Veswakar (APF) after scoring unbeaten 100 against Mid Western Region

Earlier, Krishna Karki took 4 wickets in APF innings, as Gyanendra Malla and Mehboob Alam scored 22 and 19 respectively. Malla was patient in his 33 ball stay, compared to Alam’s 11-ball 19. Less than a week ago, APF had defeated Western Region to lift Indian Ambassador’s Cup.

Yesterday, Sharad Veswakar scored a 44-ball 100 enabling APF to defeat Mid Western Region by 169 runs.

Brief Score: APF 149/6 (Sharad Veswakar 74, Gyanendra Malla 22; Krishna Karki 4-25) bt Western Region 43/10 (Akash Gupta 21; Paras Khadka 4-10, Mehboob Alam 3-3; Paras Khadka took a hat-trick in the first over of second innings)

In the first match of the day, today, Far Western Region defeated Eastern Region by 7 wickets.

Chasing a relatively easy target of 97, Far Western Region lost 3 wickets to overhaul it with 3 balls to spare. Pradeep Airee scored the highest 33 for Far Western Region. Naresh Budhayer hit a 18-ball 25.

Earlier, Far Western bowlers Chandra Saud and Bhuwan Karki bowled tight line, taking two wickets each. Saud gave away 13 runs as Karki gave away 17 runs in their 4-over spells. For Eastern Region, Manjeet Shrestha was the highest scorer with 47 off 46 deliveries. Ajay Rajbanshi scored 24.

Brief Score: Far Western 98/3 (Pradeep Airee 33, Naresh Budhayer 25) bt Eastern 96/10 (Manjeet Shrestha 46, Ajay Rajbanshi 24; Chandra Saud 2-13, Bhuwan Karki 2-17) 

Photo Courtesy: National Sports Council

38-year old Durga Kunwar in his professional outfit may give you jitters. For he is an SSP at the Armed Police Force. Many would also remember him as a cricketer, as he played last edition of Pepsi-Standard Chartered National One Day tournament.

However, this uniformed man is seen playing tennis at the courts in Saatdobato of the capital valley for the National Games, both in singles and doubles event. He qualified for the Nationals after he finished as winner of doubles event at the Inter Government Service tournament, along with Durj Rai, who is AIG at the APF. Along with doubles title, he finished as runner up in the singles event.

Kunwar is the head of the Disaster Management Training Center and the main man behind forming cricket team of APF. Interestingly, there are 7 players from APF team, selected for the national side. Given the controversy of matting pitches and grounds with uneven bounce prepared for cricket in the National Games, he seems to be worried. “I am confident of our team’s win, but the news in the papers has got me worried,” he said, adding, “I am in talks with our captain Paras Khadka over the issue. It seems outfield is bad and would hamper fielding. Fielding is important in such format of the game.”

Kunwar has played tennis since he joined Police in 1998. He lost his first singles match against Sri Ram Magar on the first day and told us, somewhat sheepishly, “Had I not qualified for Tennis, I would be playing cricket for APF at the Nationals.”

Santosh Sharma is a player participating in the shooting event at the National Games. He can be seen shooting with 10 meter air rifle at shooting range in Satdobato of the capital valley.

But Sharma was once a cricketer. This 33-year old from Dhanusha used to run around the district to be able to play a match, be it any level. The former wicketkeeper had once been a goalkeeper.

His reason for taking up individual sport is also interesting. He says, “In team games, one or two player can ruin the match, if they play badly. It doesn’t matter how well you play alone. So, I took up shooting, an individual sport.”

He has been involved in shooting for past 12 years or so. He qualified for the National Games after finishing at the top at district and second at the regional level. He says, he has trained for 4-5 months for the nationals in the practice range in Mahendranagar of Dhanusha.

For someone who used to block – being a goalkeeper and wicketkeeper – it would be interesting to see how well he fires.

(Ed: The images have been provided by Bijay Rai)

Cricket event of the Sixth National Games will kick off on Monday (27^th Feb), with APF playing against Mid Western Region at Covered Hall Ground of Kanchanpur. The championship has already been marred in controversy as Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) decided to play on matting wickets and ground with uneven outfield.

In the second match of the day, Far Western Region will play against Central Region.

For the tourney, 6 teams (5 development regions and APF team) have been divided in two groups. Pool A has Easter Region and Central Region, along with Far Western Region. Pool B consists of APF, Mid Western Region and Western Region.

APF is expected to be the biggest draw as it goes into the championship with the title of Indian Ambassador’s Cup, having beaten Western Region by 19 runs in the final. Captain of the national team Paras Khadka leads the APF team. In the last edition of National championship of cricket, APF was defeated in the final by Police team, led by Binod Das. This time around, Police team is not participating. Binod Das is to play in this edition of nationals from Central Region. Wicketkeeper of the national side in 50-overs matches, Mahesh Chettri has not found a place in any of the teams. He was a part of Police team and did not play qualifying matches at the regional level. Subsequently, he was not included in the Mid Western Region team.

Talking about the championship, Shakti Gauchan, who has made a comeback in the national T20 set up, said, “I am excited about the prospects of participating. It would be great to participate in the march past.”

In the women’s event, Central Region will play Far Western Region in the opening match, which will be played Zonal Police Office Ground, Kanchanpur. Central Region will play against Mid Western Region in the other match of the day.

In the women’s section, Eastern Region, Mid Western Region and APF have been kept in Pool A, while Central Region, Far Western Region and Far Western Region are in Pool B. Top two teams from each pool – both in women’s and men’s – will go to the semi-final.

APF women’s team is playing its first national championship since it was formed in 2011. Like men’s, the women’s APF team is also star studded boasting the likes of former captain, Neera Rajopadhyay, Sita Ranamagar, Binu Budhamagar and Sarita Ranamagar in its ranks. Additionally, it also has two bowlers who have taken hat tricks at international level in Rubina Chhetri (U19 captain) and Karuna Bhandari. National team captain Nary Thapa leads the Central Western Region team.

Inclusion of cricket in the National Games has drawn mixed reactions, as many have criticized inclusion of the sport without proper infrastructure. There has been some controversy in the selection of players for the regional teams as well, with some known names not getting proper role in the teams. In the last edition of National Games, 3 years ago, cricket was included as demonstration event. Then, teams from all cricket development regions, numbering 6, were included. The number of cricket development regions has since gone up to 8. However, the teams are participating as administrative development regions.

It should be noted that cricket was a part of National Games in the years 1981 (Kathmandu), 1983 (Pokhara) and 1985 (Birgunj). Then, the teams represented their zones and as many as 10 out of 14 zones played in the championship. It was taken off for the National Games in 1987 (Hetauda) and 1996 (Nepalgunj).

Nepali national cricket team, preparing for the ICC World T20 Qualifiers to be held in the UAE in March, was undergoing through a closed camp training in Kathmandu but now all the players are in Mahendranagar to participate in the Sixth National Games.

The Sixth National Games could have been a good practice tournament for the players had the National Sports Council and local organizers prepared better grounds.

The NSC invested Rs 2.8 million to prepare a ground near Kanchanpur Covered Hall, where men´s cricket will be played. Likewise, NSC invested Rs 250,000 to develop another cricket ground at the premises of Zonal Police Office.

The national team will definitely get turf pitches and smooth grounds on UAE in the ICC event but they will have to play the Sixth National Games on the artificial pitches (mat). Meanwhile, the outfields barely have grass on it and the ground level is not properly maintained. The ground at the Police Office is relatively better but there is also an artificial pitch on it.

“Fielding would be a risky job on this ground. No one can dive on this ground to save boundaries and players can pick injury while fielding because of the uneven surface,” said Manjeet Shrestha, a former national team cricketer and player of the Eastern Region.

A Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) source said that they had asked national team players not to participate in the Sixth National Games since they were under closed camp training but Armed Police Force, which enrolls most of the national team players, objected to the idea.

Meanwhile, CAN Vice-president Chatur Bahadur Chand complained that the NSC didn´t consult the association before preparing the ground.

“NSC and local organizers didn´t consult the CAN, and now their inexperience is turning into a costly affair,” said Chand. “We have informally asked players to keep their safety a priority and not sustain injury by attempting tough fielding,” he added.

NSC Member Secretary Yuvaraj Lama said that the ground could not be maintained up to the required level because of the National Games´ deadline.

“We were forced to start the ground development works in the last hour because of technical reasons and we´ve developed the ground from zero to a playable stage,” said Lama.

(Ed: This write up appeared in Republica national daily on 26th February, 2012)

Armed Police Force (APF) won the title of the Indian Ambassador’s Cricket Cup T20 Tournament on Wednesday after defeating Western Region by 19 runs.

It was the fourth title victory of APF in five tournaments. With the win, APF bagged Rs 150,000 while Western Region received Rs 100,000.

APF elected to bat first and scored 144 runs losing six wickets in 20 overs. Chasing the total of 145 runs, Western Region could manage to score only 125 runs losing nine wickets.

APF lost their opener Dipendra Chaudhary on duck. Subash Khakurel and Sharad Vesawkar shared a 40-run partnership for the second wicket. Khakurel was dropped by wicketkeeper Subash Pradhan on two and Vesawkar was dropped by Rahul BK. Western Region got rid of Khakurel when he was at 23 runs off 31 balls. Vesawkar scored 17 runs off 16 balls.

Skipper Paras Khadka scored 39 runs off 41 balls with five boundaries. Khadka was also dropped by Krishna Karki earlier. Mehboob Alam scored 21 runs while Gyanendra Malla scored 20 runs off nine balls.

Rahul BK and Krishna Karki grabbed two wickets each while Dipesh Khatri and Saurab Khanal shared a wicket each.

Subash Pradhan and Fazlur Rehman gave a good start to Western Region as they shared a 33-run partnership for the first wicket. Pradhan gave away his wicket with 27 runs off 35 balls. With the fall of Pradhan, Western continued to lose wickets in regular interval. Rahul BK scored 17 runs while Rehman was out on 12 runs.

Basanta Regmi and Sanjam Regmi grabbed three wickets each while Paras Khadka took a wicket. Basanta Regmi was awarded with the man-of-the-final award and received Rs 5,000.

Subash Khakurel was named player-of-the series for his 195 runs off 145 balls in three matches. Khakurel received Rs 25,000.

Asian Cricket Council (ACC) slapped a 10 per cent penalty on the capital and development grant for Nepal as Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) failed to submit the financial report within the deadline, a national daily reported.

“ACC has sent a letter to CAN regarding the penalty after CAN fails to submit financial report of fourth quarter of 2011 within January 20,” Nagarik daily stated. Continue reading →

Armed Police Force (APF) Club registered a massive 176-run victory over Mid-Western Region with a century knock from Sharad Vesawakar during the Indian Ambassador’s Cricket Cup T20 Tournament on Tuesday. With the win, APF secured a place in Wednesday’s final and will lock horns for the title with the Western Region which defeated Far-Western Region by six wickets in another semifinal match.

Besides Vesawakar’s glittering show, Subash Khakurel also posted a half century to help APF score a total of 247 runs for the loss of four wickets in 20 overs. Number three batsman Vesawakar was unbeaten on 111 runs off just 38 balls with eight boundaries and nine huge sixes. Vesawakar faced 21 balls for the first fifty while he faced only 13 balls for another fifty.

Opener Khakurel completed half century in just 32 balls. Khakurel scored 72 off 48 balls with nine boundaries and a huge six. Khakurel and Vewsawakar shared a 111-run partnership for the second wicket. Dipendra Chaudhary scored 30 runs off 16 balls while Sanjay Shrestha scored 28 runs off 17 balls. Siddhant Raj Shahi, Yogesh Bam and Anupam Singh grabbed a wicket each.

In chasing the huge total of 248 runs, Mid- Western was restricted in just 71 runs in 16.5 overs. Sunam Gautam grabbed three wickets while Vesawakar and Prithu Baskota took two wickets each. Basanta Regmi and Paras Khadka shared a wicket apiece.

Subendu Pandey was the highest scorer for Mid-Western with 23 runs off 24 balls while Rupesh Sharma scored 19 runs off 32 balls. Other batsmen of Mid-Western could not reach the double figure margin.

Earlier, in the first match of the day, Western Region invited Far-Western Region to bat first and restricted it for just 52 runs. Bijay Thapa grabbed three wickets while Lal Bahadur Adhikar and Rahul BK took two wickets.

Pradeep Airee scored 15 runs off 16 balls while Santosh Bhatt scored 13 runs off 29 balls. Other Far-Western batsmen could not reach the double figure margin.

Western Region did not have a good start while chasing the low total of 53 runs as it lost its opener Fajlur Rahman on five. Western lost its four batsmen with the total of 15 runs on board. But opener Subash Pradhan and Krishna Karki shared a winning 41-run partnership for the fifth wicket. Pradhan was not out on 21 runs off 26 balls while Karki was unbeaten on 18 runs off 30 balls.

Chandra Saud and Santosh Bhatt grabbed two wickets each for Far-Western.