The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) has announced a 15-member team for the 19th Asian Games to be held in Hangzhou, China, two months later.
Wicketkeeper batsman Binod Bhandari and fast bowler Abinash Bohora have made a comeback in the T20 format tournament to be held from September 19 to October 8.
Binod Bhandari last represented Nepal in a T20 International in April 2021, and his last one-day international (ODI) appearance was in July 2022 against Scotland.
Abinash Bohora, on the other hand, last played a T20 for Nepal in May 2022 against Zimbabwe A and played a T20 International against Papua New Guinea in April 2022. However, he hasn’t played in ODIs since February 2020.
Another notable inclusion is Sundeep Jora, who last played a T20 international in October 2019. Jora is currently part of High Performence Camp in Nepal’s tour of Sri Lanka.
Nepal Cricket Team Men’s Squad for Asian Games 2023
Rohit Kumar Poudel ( Captain ) , Kushal Bhurtel, Dipendra Singh Airee, Mohammad Aasif Sheikh ( wicketkeeper ) , Kushal Malla, Gulsan Kumar Jha, Karan KC, Abinash Bohara, Sandeep Lamichhane, Lalit Rajbanshi, Bibek Kumar Yadav, Pratish GC, Sompal Kami, Sundeep Jora, Binod Bhandari ( wicketkeeper )
The Asian Games T20 cricket tournament ( Men’s ) will consist of 18 teams, including the host nation, China, and the top 18 Asian teams based on the ICC T20 international rankings until June 2023.
The official schedule for the tournament has not been released yet, but an unofficial schedule suggests that Nepal will play their first match against Indonesia on September 29th. If they emerge victorious, Nepal will advance to the pre-quarterfinals, facing the winner between Bahrain and Malaysia. Success in that match will lead them to a quarterfinal clash against Sri Lanka. Notably, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and India have already qualified for the quarterfinals based on their rankings.
Participating Teams for Asian Games 2023 ( Men’s )
India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, UAE, Nepal, Hong Kong, Oman, Malaysia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Indonesia, Bhutan, and China as the hosts.
