The Nepalese Cricket Team is set to kick off the Asian Games campaign on September 27 (Wednesday). They are scheduled to compete against Mongolia in their opening match, marking Mongolia’s debut on the international stage.
The matches in the Asian Games have been accorded international status by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and will be played in the T20 International (T20I) format. Hence, Mongolia will be Nepal’s 20th opponent in the format. They have played against 19 different teams, with Kenya being the last one.
The match will be played at Zhejiang University of Technology Cricket Field. In the second match, Nepal will play against Maldives on October 1. Nepal defeated Maldives in the previous two meetings in the Asian Games itself.
Nepal has played six matches across two editions of Asian Games Cricket. Nepal defeated the Maldives and faced a defeat against Hong Kong and Sri Lanka in 2010.
Team Nepal thrashed Kuwait and the Maldives in 2014’s edition but ended up in a losing side against Afghanistan in the quarter-final.
Nepal has not yet secured a medal in Asian Games Cricket but is determined to achieve one in this edition.
Nepal vs Mongolia details:
Time: 6:45 AM (NST)
Venue: Zhejiang University of Technology Cricket Field
Live Telecast: Sony Network (Television)
What to expect?
With Mongolia playing a debut international match, Nepal is expected to register a big win. If Nepal bats first, they are likely to post big and if they bowl first, they are likely to wrap up the inning to a mere total.
Probable XI:
Kushal Bhurtel, Aasif Sheikh, DS Airee, Rohit Paudel, Kushal Malla, Binod Bhandari, Bibek Yadav/Gulshan Jha, Karan KC, Sompal Kami, Sandeep Lamichhane, Avinash Bohara.
Nepal’s previous record in Asian Games Cricket:
Matches Played – 6 (won three and lost three)
Most runs – Binod Bhandari (87)
Most wickets – Basant Regmi and Sagar Pun (7)
Highest Total – 129/9 vs Maldives
Nepal’s Squad for Asian Games 2023: Rohit Paudel (C), Aasif Sheikh, Kushal Bhurtel, Kushal Malla, Sandeep Jora, Binod Bhandari, Dipendra Singh Airee, Bibek Yadav, Gulshan Jha, Karan KC, Sompal Kami, Sandeep Lamichhane, Pratish GC, Avinash Bohara, Sagar Dhakal.
- Binod Bhandari is the only player to feature in all three edition.
- Only Sompal Kami and Binod Bhandari from the current squad were in the squad of 2014.
