By a Staff Reporter
Kathmandu – Sandeep Lamichhane, the former captain of the Nepal National Cricket Team, is set to mark his comeback playing in the upcoming home series against Scotland and Namibia after the revocation of his ban.
The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) announced the squad for the tri-series under ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 on Thursday, which includes Sandeep.
Sandeep was suspended by CAN in September of last year after being accused of coercion of a minor. In November, the District Court of Kathmandu ordered him to send behind the bars until the final verdict of the case.
However, the bench of High Court judges Dhruvaraj Bhattarai and Ramesh Dhakal overturned the decision on January 13th and ordered Sandeep’s release on bail. He was imprisoned for 99 days.
The ban on Sandeep was lifted by the Board Meeting of CAN held in Pokhara on January 31, allowing him to be included in the preliminary squad. Furthermore, he is picked in the final squad.
With Surya Tamang making the cut into the national team for the first time, Sundeep Jora, Kushal Malla, and Bhim Sharki returned to the national team.
Newly appointed head coach Monty Desai has kept Aarif Sheikh, Pratish GC, Shayam Dhakal, and Arjun Saud in reserves.
Nepal will host Namibia and Scotland from February 14th to 21st at TU Cricket Ground. The hosts will step into the field under the captaincy of Rohit Paudel.
Nepal currently stands second to last on the competition points table with 18 points from 24 matches. They have won 8, drawn 1, lost 14, and shared points in 1 match due to a rain interruption.
Scotland is at the top of the table with 46 points from 32 matches, while Namibia is third with 37 points from 30 matches.
Nepal’s Fixtures:
February 14: Nepal VS Namibia
February 17: Nepal VS Scotland
February 18: Nepal VS Namibia
February 21: Nepal VS Scotland
Final Squad:
Rohit Paudel (Captain), Kushal Bhurtel, Aaif Sheikh (Wicketkeeper), Gyanendra Malla, Kushal Malla, Dipendra Singh Airee, Sundeep Jora, Sompal Kami, Karan KC, Lalit Rajbanshi, Sandeep Lamichhane, Gulsan Jha, Bhim Sharki, Surya Tamang
