The first month of 2016 brought back smiles to Nepali cricket fans who were heartbroken after the senior side lost four consecutive matches in the World Cricket league. The junior squad (U-19s) made it to the second round of their world cup for the first time in 16 years.
Even as Nepal’s dreams of making it to the semi-final of the tournament were crushed by the Bangladeshi side, the opposing teams could not stop Nepal’s new stars from rising. It was during this tournament that players like Sandeep Lamichhane, Raju Rijal, Prem Tamang, Sushil Kandel and Dipendra Airee showed that they too are ready to play for the senior side.
But fortune favoured only two of the brave performers this time. The team’s captain Raju Rijal and leggie Sandeep Lamichhane are the only two players that have been selected for World Cricket League Cup matches against Namibia. Raju was selected because he is a wicket keeper (Nepal’s regular wicket keeper Subash Khakurel is out of form), but Sandeep was selected because of his luck. He is the only wicket-taking leg spinner Nepal have at the moment.
Who is Sandeep?
Sandeep says, “In cricket individual performance can only take you to a certain level, after that it all depends on luck.”
The teenager unwittingly summed-up the story of his life so far.
The lad from Chitwan says he started playing cricket at the age of eight. “In the beginning, I played for my school, then I started training at Chitwan Cricket Academy under former national squad skipper Raju Khadka.”
Sandeep, who used to watch Shane Warne bowl his vicious leg breaks, thought that some day he would bowl like the Aussie legend. While training in Chitwan, Nepal’s coach Pubudu Dassanayke spotted his talent, and said, “This kid will go places.”
The talent he put on display was not enough for him to get to play the World Cup qualifiers. As he recounts, luck evaded him that time. But it would not do so for a long time. He got a call-up for the World Cup squad.
The match against Ireland, Sandeep says, will be etched in his memory for ever. He completed a hat-trick against the European side. When Nepal ended their WC campaign following a defeat at the hands of Bangladesh, Sandeep was among the top wicket-takers of the entire tournament, the ICC’s website even compared him to the Aussie leg spinner!
Selected for WCL against Namibia
Sandeep, who studies in the ninth grade, says he’s ecstatic about being selected for the national squad. He reiterates that if he’s lucky on D-day, he will get a chance to debut for the national side.
Going by the wicket at TU, and looking for clues in coach Jagat Tamata’s recent statements, luck seems to be following the young cricketer this time. The pitch has traditionally been slow, and bowler-friendly.
“We could go in with up to four spinners, if the conditions demand,” says coach Jagat Tamata. If Nepal go in with four spinners, Sandeep is certain to make his debut. But even if he does not, he has years ahead of him to wait for that stroke of luck.
