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Nepal will play against hosts Zimbabwe and West Indies in the World Cup Qualifiers. According to the International Cricket Council (ICC), Nepal will play against Zimbabwe on June 22. Similarly, Nepal will play against the USA on June 20 and West Indies on June 22. In the last match of the group stage, Nepal will play against the Netherlands on June 24. Prior to their group stage matches, Nepal will play two practices. Nepal will play against the UAE on June 13 and Oman on June 15. The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) on Monday had announced a preliminary squad for the 2023 ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Qualifier scheduled to take place in Zimbabwe from June 18 to July 9 this year.

The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) has announced a 22-member squad under the captainship of Rohit Paudel for the World Cup Qualifiers in Zimbabwe. Along with Paudel, Kushal Bhurtel, Asif Sheikh, Gyanendra Malla Kushal Malla, Arif Sheikh, Dipendra Singh Aire, Gulsan Jha, Sompal Kami, Karan KC, Sandeep Lamichhane, Bhim Sarki, Pratish GC, Lalit Rajbansi, Arjun Saud, Sandeep Jora, Dev Khanal, Kishor Mahato, Surya Tamang, Kamal Singh Airee, Shyam Mausam Dhakal and Abinash Bohara are in the team.

The government has decided to felicitate the players of Nepali cricket team that won the ACC Men’s Premier Cup with a cash prize of Rs 600, 000 each. A Cabinet meeting held on Wednesday decided to honor the players and head coach with Rs 600, 000 each and other officials with Rs 300, 000 each. In the match played at the TU Ground in Kirtipur on Tuesday, Nepal defeated the UAE by seven wickets to secure its place in the Asia Cup scheduled to take place in September 2023. Nepal had won against the same side in March, landing a berth in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifiers. Nepal will compete in Group A against Pakistan and India. Group B consists of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan. Similarly, the government has decided to allocate the necessary funds in the budget of the next financial year to make the TU Ground of international standard.  

Nepal have won the ACC Men’s Premier Cup, making its way to the Asia Cup for the first time. This is indeed a dream come true for Nepali cricket team and supporters. In the final held at the TU Ground, Kirtipur, Nepal defeated the UAE by seven wickets to secure its place in the Asia Cup scheduled to take place in Sept 2023.

Nepal had won against the same side in March, landing a berth in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Qualifiers. Nepal will compete in Group A against Pakistan and India. Group B consists of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and Afghanistan. 

Nepal chased the target of 118 runs in 30.3 overs with the loss of three wickets.  Gulsan Jha and Bhim Sarki shared an unbeaten partnership of 96 runs. They contributed 67 and 36, respectively. Jha hit six sixes and three fours in 84 balls and Sarki hit four fours in 71 balls.  Jha now has two fifties at a young age of 17 in his ODI career. The first one was in the final and deciding match for the World Cup qualifier against the UAE. The second one on Tuesday, again against the UAE which too was a historic final for Nepal.

The UAE’s Rohan Mustafa took two wickets and Aayan Afzal Khan took one.   The UAE scored 117 runs at the cost of all their wickets in the first inning. They lost the toss and were asked to bat first. Asif Khan made 46 for the team with seven fours and one six. Aryan Larka scored 13 runs on 28 balls. 

For Nepal, Lalit Rajbanshi took four wickets followed by two each by Karan KC and Sandeep Lamichhane and one each by Gulsan Jha and Sompal Kami. Rain forced a halt of the game on Monday at 27.3 overs, forcing it to be continued on Tuesday. With just one wicket in hand, the UAE had scored 106 runs on the first day. Gulsan Jha was named the player of the match and Sandeep Lamichhane, the player of the series. Lamichhane took 13 wickets in this tournament.

As the top three finishers at the Premier Cup, Nepal, the UAE, and Oman will compete in the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup in July against five-member ‘A’ Teams from the region. The team received praise from Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal for their performance. He promised to promote and reward Nepali cricketers for their hard work and achievements.  Deputy Prime Ministers Narayan Kaji Shrestha and Purna Bahadur Khadka attended the final game at TU Cricket Ground.

Cancellation rumors

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the cricket governing body of India, has declared that the Indian team would not travel to Pakistan for the Asia Cup due to security concerns. Pakistan is scheduled to host the Asia Cup 2023 in September.

The BCCI is allegedly intending to stage a brand-new five-nation tournament as a warm-up for the ODI World Cup 2023 after rejecting the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB)’s ‘hybrid model’ for hosting the Asia Cup 2023.

The Indian team will play its matches outside of Pakistan while the other teams play there, according to a hybrid model that Pakistan has proposed to the Asian Cricket Council (ACC). However, the BCCI wants the entire tournament moved somewhere else. And the PCB has asserted that if they lose their hosting rights, they will not take part in the competition.

The BCCI and the PCB remain firm in their positions on the Asia Cup hosting, which has been a hot topic in recent weeks. Additionally, there have recently been rumors that the Asia Cup will be canceled or postponed. However, the ACC will have to call an Executive Board meeting to postpone or cancel the event. The meeting may be called by the chairman Jay Shah, who also serves as the BCCI’s secretary, within seven days.

Inside Sports quoted an ACC source: “To date, there has been no indication of any such meeting.”  According to a report in the Pakistani media, PCB would not consent to hosting the Asia Cup at a neutral venue and no such ‘neutral venue’ proposal or notice has been sent to the member countries as of Monday, according to Inside Sports.

If these two strong teams stick to their commitment on Asia Cup hosting, Nepal, an emerging team who fought for its place for the cup, will have its dream killed due to an unnecessary power tussle.