For the first time in its history, Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) organized a franchise cricket league. But the CAN initiative had a scandalous start, thanks to an alleged match-fixing scandal. What’s more, teams complained that they were not paid and that those responsible for paying them had gone out of contact after the match.  In the wake of these controversies, the Ministry of Home Affairs has ordered an inquiry and the Central Investigation Bureau has already initiated a probe. 

Against this backdrop, Chumbi Lama, a CAN member, spoke to AP1 TV, sister broadcaster of The Annapurna Express. Excerpts: 

Why did the Nepal T20 league go to an Indian company? In 2020, CAN signed a formal agreement with India’s Seven3Sports, which gave the latter strategic, commercial and advisory rights for almost 10 years. I consider it a black day for the Nepali sports fraternity. I knew from the start that this deal will create misunderstanding in the future with regard to rights given to the company and lack of transparency surrounding international events. So, I had suggested CAN to act as per Nepal’s relevant laws. No one heeded those suggestions at that time.   Who was responsible for the agreement and what roles did you and others have to disagree upon it? The work ethics of Seven3Sports and CAN didn’t match. I and other board members warned the committee to strike a deal with the company, to no avail. CAN signed the deal with Seven3Sports in haste before its annual general meeting. Basically, five members of CAN’s executive board, including chair, vice chair and secretary, worked out these processes.  Can you elaborate on the (Jan 3) dispute in the field? The organizers, ie Seven3Sports, went out of contact and they didn’t provide salary to match officials and players. So, the players and the officials delayed the game in protest.  How do you feel about this incident? Youths like us have joined this field to contribute to Nepali sports, especially cricket. We must put an end to incidents like these. This particular incident has made me sad. Cricket brings families together, forges brotherhood all over the world. Incidents like this must not happen again. My best wishes for the progress of CAN. What’s the mental state of players after the incident? Haven’t talked to the players, but I know everyone is frustrated. So, a solution must be worked out as soon as possible. CAN must investigate the incident properly and report the findings to the authorities concerned.  Police and CIB are also probing the case, so let’s hope for the best. Nepali cricket has a very bright future but we must work hard for the same.