Sandeep Lamichhane set to Join Team Nepal for the Caribbean Leg of T20 World Cup 2024
In a drastic turn of events, Nepal’s star leg spinner Sandeep Lamichhane will be rejoining the national team in the Caribbean countries for the World Cup 2024. This is because his rape conviction was recently acquitted on appeal. The former Nepal captain who had been sentenced to an eight-year prison term had his conviction overturned right at the beginning of the World Cup. Despite the efforts of the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) and some other Government organizations, Lamichhane was rejected entry into the US as his visa was not granted.
Nepal was forced to play their initial two games without him, being defeated by the Netherlands in Dallas the previous week and set to face Sri Lanka at Lauderhill, Florida on Wednesday without his talents. Lamichhane is one such player that is critical to Nepal’s game plan and has proved to be a morale booster for the team as well.
Despite his name not being on the publicly released list of the team, Lamichhane was in the final squad list provided to ICC before the tournament. Instead of him, the travelling reserve Pratish GC was included in the official list of 15 players, and the selection criteria were questioned.
Lamichhane’s experience in the Caribbean
Lamichhane has already arrived in the Caribbean. He has good experience playing for teams of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) like St Kitts and Nevis Patriots, Barbados Tridents, and Jamaica Tallawahs. Having played under these conditions along with familiarity with the pitches in the Caribbean will significantly aid Lamichhane to help Nepal’s performance.
Furthermore, he would surely strengthen the team for the last two play-offs against South Africa and Bangladesh to be played in Kingstown, St Vincent. It is believed that his participation in these games will greatly improve the Nepalese team’s prospects since he has experience playing on Caribbean pitches.
Can Lamichhane Make an Impact Straight Away?
Although, he has not played a competitive match since the end of last year but has been consistently honing his skills at the TU Ground, Kathmandu, following his acquittal from legal charges. Nepal is a team that has not been given much of a chance to shine at the T20 Cricket World Cup and the fans are awaiting Lamichhane’s return to the squad and his influence on the team to perform better in the tournament's remaining matches.
Legal and visa issues have caused many problems for the Nepal team, but they must overcome them. Fortunately, the return of Lamichhane adds new hope. He adds significant value to the narrative of Team Nepal as they prepare in their quests to defy the odds and compete at the World Cup.
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