Will Our Players Give Decent Fight?

The Nepali cricket world was left stunned after the US Embassy in Kathmandu refused to provide a visa to one of its key players. Despite repeated requests, the embassy refused to grant a visa to Sandeep Lamichhane, who would undoubtedly give the Nepali squad an edge in the T20 World Cup, which is being staged jointly by the United States and the West Indies. Sandeep was refused a visa by the host nation's embassy, despite the fact that he was called to a visa interview for the second time after his initial effort was rejected. The incident has broken the hearts of thousands of Nepali cricket fans, who expected Sandeep to bring a winning dimension to the Nepali team because he had more experience playing international tournaments, including international club and franchise tournaments around the world, than any other player on the current Nepali team.

Sandeep had drawn a lot of flak after being charged in a sexual assault case for which he spent some time behind bars and was subsequently suspended by the Cricket Association of Nepal. Though the Kathmandu district court has sentenced him eight years’ imprisonment, Patan High Court acquitted him a few weeks ago, raising his chance to be part of the national cricket team. Even after CAN lifted its ban, he has been compelled to sit at home and watch television channels where his teammates face off against the Netherlands, Bangladesh, South Africa, and Sri Lanka in Group D matches of the tournament from June 4 to 17. Nepal opens its World Cup campaign against the Netherlands today evening in Dallas, Texas, USA.

Clean chit

It is widely rumoured that the American Embassy, which adheres to stringent US visa rules and requirements, did not believe it was worthwhile to provide a visa even to a noted player accused of rape. Nonetheless, many fans thought that the embassy of the World Cup host country, the United States, should have provided him with a visa as the high court had given him a clean chit. The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) and the sports ministry's failure to act quickly and mobilise relevant channels, such as the International Cricket Association's office, to acquire Sandeep's visa is even more frustrating. The CAN is responsible for failing to include his name in the first 15-player list. It only submitted the names of 14 players, leaving one position open as it awaited the High Court's verdict on the cricketer's legal challenge. Some believed that Interpol's red corner notice issued against Sandeep when he was in the United States after the victim girl filed a rape complaint against him contributed to the player's inability to get travel permission.

While some supporters blame the American Embassy in Kathmandu and CAN officials, including its President and Secretary, for Sandeep’s visa ordeal, many others believe that the present group of Nepali players currently in the United States can put up marvellous performances. Nepali cricketers had earlier exceeded expectations after completing an excellent job in 2022-2023, winning 11 of 12 international matches and securing their berth in the T20 World Cup. Nepal is making its second appearance in the T20 World Cup.

When the Nepali squad first competed in a world-level competition in 2014, several of its current players were just 12 or 13 years old. With the exception of two seniors, bowlers Sompal Kami and Karan KC, who featured in the 2014 tournament, all players, including Captain Rohit Paudel, are fresh for the World Cup. While Lamichhane would have been a key player for the team, there are other excellent players who can give the Nepal squad an advantage in the group D fixtures. Dipendra Singh Airee, Kushal Bhurtel, Kushal Malla, Ashif Sheikh, Gulsan Jha, Sagar Ghimire, Sandeep Jora, Lalit Rajbanshi, and Abinash Bohara are all skilled players with extensive international experience.

Some cricket commentators, along with captain Paudel, have often said that the Nepali side has the skill and talent to defeat any team in the world. The format of T20 cricket allows any side to score an upset win; therefore, experts and our players are correct when they say Nepal has the ability to defeat any team, including all Test-playing countries.

Strong challengers

For all of the brouhaha surrounding Nepal's second appearance on the world stage, one should always be aware of the fact that it will be tough for Nepal, with relatively less experience of playing at the world stage, to triumph against cricket powerhouses. Moreover, defeating opponents in one or two games is insufficient to advance to the next round, let alone lift the trophy. Winning matches and trophies at the world level is a difficult proposition since all rival teams involved make extensive preparations. Many nations—Australia, India, England, South Africa, New Zealand, Pakistan, the West Indies, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Ireland—are strong challengers, and defeating any of them is considered a significant accomplishment for an ICC associate country like Nepal.

Based on its success against regional and other competitors, we can predict that Nepal may defeat one or two ICC associate teams during its latest outing in the USA and the Caribbean. It would be prudent for us not to have high expectations regarding our team’s giant-slaying deeds, such as beating powerhouses Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, and others. However, we can at least expect that Nepal will play to its full potential, put up a decent fight against the standard squad, and win matches against associate member teams such as the Netherlands in Group D. So, let us hope that the Nepali cricket team returns home with their heads held high after an outing that can be termed an experience-gaining campaign at the highest level. 

(Upadhyay is former managing editor of this daily)