KATHMANDU, Jan 21: A 16-member squad for the national cricket team has been selected Sunday for the upcoming camp for the Bilateral Series 2019 against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which starts from Friday in Dubai.
A selection committee headed by International Cricket Council (ICC) representative Aminul Islam, head coach of the national cricket team Jagat Tamatta and the skipper of the team Paras Khadka finalized the squad.
Nepal is set to play three T20s and three ODIs against the home team which starts with the first ODI match on January 25, while the second ODI will be played on January 26. The third and the final ODI will be played on January 28. Likewise, the teams will play the first T20 match on January 31, with the second and the third T20s to be played on February 1 and 3 respectively.
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All the matches are set to be played at the ICC Academy Oval Ground in Dubai.
The selection was made based on the performance in the recently concluded Everest Premier League (EPL) and the Pokhara Premier League.
New faces like Avinash Bohora, Bhim Sharki, Pawan Sarraf and Sandeep Jora have been included in the team for the series.
The young players, who might make their debuts in the series, were selected for the 25-member preliminary squad as well. Their performances in the recent times made their way to the final squad.
Meanwhile, national team member Sharad Vesawkar has withdrawn his name from the squad due to illness (body weakness due to severe deficiency of vitamin D), which will take around three to four weeks to recover, while Sandeep Lamichhane will return back to Nepal on Sunday after participating in Australia’s Big Bash League (BBL) and the Bangladesh Premier League.
The team will fly to the UAE on Tuesday.
Squad
Paras Khadka ©, vice captain Gyanendra Malla, Avinash Bohora, Basant Regmi, Bhim Sharki, Binod Bhandari, Dipendra Singh Airee, Karan KC, Lalit Narayan Rajbanshi, Aarif Sheikh, Pawan Sarraf, Pradeep Airee, Rohit Kumar Paudel, Sandeep Lamichhane, Sompal Kami and Sandeep Jora.
Reserves: Lalit Nath Bhandari, Sushan Bhari and Bikram Sob.