Nepalese U-19 Cricket team-On My View
It seems the road to U-19 world cup will be very tough to the Asian associates qualifier. Not only the team has to win the Asian trophy ( or has to stand second to Malaysia), it also has to win a match against Scotland, the runner-up of the European Qualifier. Nepal, being the defending Asian champion and thus the qualifier of U-19 world cup of previous 3 versions, is looking not upset its fans this time. Poor Nepalese team, despite giving a high performance in the world cup, it still has to go through the qualification process. Nepalese team in U-19 level is much stronger than most of the test playing nations. The proof is its 2 wins against South Africa, 1 against Pakistan, New Zealand and Bangladesh. I think Nepal should be promoted directly to the world cup by giving it one day status, like Kenya in the senior version. Kenya has no longer to play in the ICC trophy- a gateway to the Cricket World Cup.
Anyway, there’s not much to expect it to happen this time, as fixture has already been made. However, I am much optimistic about Nepal to qualify for the world cup in ease. I think we have a strong line up, consisting of some famous names, who have already proved themselves in the international level. The first name is Sharad Veswakar, who undoubtedly is the best batsman Nepal has produced so far. He has played a leading role in Nepal’s inning and get his team out of trouble many times. The captain Paras Khadka, Gyanendra Malla, Antim Thapa, Mahesh Chhetry and Akash Gupta will be other pillars of Nepalese batting. The bowling sees tough as always with Amrit Bhattarai, Ratan Rauniyar, Shashi Keshari, Rom Shrestha and Raj Shrestha in the team. Altogether, Nepal is a well balanced side, with the hand full of experiences that will be an ultimate advantage in the upcoming series.
