The 15-day tournament will see six Nepali cricket teams- Kathmandu Kings, Lalitpur Patriots, Pokhara Rhinos, Chitwan Tigers, Biratnagar Warriors, and Bhairahawa Gladiators.

Everest Premier League 2018 Highlights

#Day13 (Dec 22): 

Finals: Lalitpur Patriots Win #EPL2018 Title!

The grand finale of the country’s highest-budget T20 cricket league #EPL2018 has taken a grand ending at the Tribhuvan University Cricket Ground in Kirtipur on December 22, 2018.

The final match of the third edition of #EverestPremierLeague series saw Lalitpur Patriots winning the #EPL2018Title, marking the team’s maiden victory in the EPL history. The last match of the #EPLTournament on December 22, 2018 was held between Lalitpur Patriots and Bhairahawa Gladiators.

Gladiators won the toss and chose to field first. Patriots, who began batting first, scored 155 runs in 19.1 overs for the loss of all wickets.

Jaykishan Anilbhai Kolsawala stood as the highest scorer of Patriots team with 57 runs, followed by Sandeep Jhora, Gaurav Yudhveer Tomar, Kushal Bhurtel and Gyanendra Malla, who scored 24,23,11 and 10 runs, respectively.

Gladiators began their batting innings on high confidence but failed to reach the set target. The team completely collapsed at 141 runs for the loss of nine wickets, even after playing all the 20 overs.

Patriots bowlers performed their best in stopping the Gladiators across the innings. Lalit Narayan Rajbanshi claimed the highest wickets of all (3) smashing important players, Sharad Vesawkar and Mohammad Naveed. Yogendra Singh Karki and Pawan Sarraf also managed to take two wickets each securing the team’s success.

Raj Bhanshi won the ‘Player of the Match’ title and Ravi Inder Singh of Gladiators was announced the ‘Player of the Series’.

#Day12 (Dec 20):

Qualifier-2: Kathmandu Kings XI Vs Bhairahawa Gladiators

Next to the eliminator round arrived the Qualifier-2 match of #EPL2018 between Kathmandu Kings XI and Bhairahawa Gladiators.

The match began with Kings batting first after the Gladiators choice to field.

Beginning with Shrestha and Rohan Mustafa as openers, the Kings XI team managed to score 100 runs in 20 overs for the loss of all wickets. S Rajali (27 runs in 26 balls), P Sahu (25 runs in 22 balls) and A Shrestha (13 runs in 32 balls) led the team’s batting innings with minimum double-digit scores. While, the rest scored only single-digits with Lohani remaining to be a not-out.

Gladiators had a 100-run target, but they did not take much time to finish off that. With striking performances by RN ten Doeschate (45 runs in 38 balls) and Inder Singh (31 runs in 19 balls), the team reached the target easily in 17 overs, by scoring 102 runs for the loss of 4 wickets.

Kushal Malla was awarded the ‘Player of the Match’ title. With this win, Gladiators advanced to finals.

#Day11 (Dec 19):

Eliminator: Gladiators Win, Tigers Loose!

After the exciting Qualifier-1 on December 18, 2018, EPL 2018 series with back with the second qualifier round that paves way for the #EPL2018Finals.

Bhairahawa Gladiators and Chitwan Tigers played the eliminator match. Gladiators won the toss and chose to field first.

Tigers began the innings with Stirling and Sunar as openers. The match began with a slow start by Stirling who scored 14 runs in 7 balls. Though the team continued with the same pace till fourth batsman in the order, DS Airee changed the game all together by scoring 56 runs in 45 balls. However, the rest managed with only single-digit scores. The team finally finished at 139 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in 20 overs.

Then the Gladiators stepped in! Beginning with a sounding performance by PS Airee, who scored 42 runs in 38 balls, the team went on to win the team despite single-digit performances by others in the order. The team smashed the target in 18.2 overs by scoring 142 runs for the loss of 6 wickets. S Vesawkar (29 runs in 27 balls), RK Paudel (24 runs in 11 balls) and Kaushal Malla (27 balls in 13 balls) were the other top-scorers of the team.

P Airee stood as the ‘Player of the Match’ and Gladiators advanced to the finals.

#Day10 (Dec 18):

Qualifiee-1: Kathmandu Kings XI Vs Lalitpur Patriots

Riding high on confidence drawn from the round-robin league matches held over the past nine days, Kings and Patriots faced each other for Qualifier-1 round of the Everest Premier League 2018 on December 18, 2018.

Lalitpur Patriots won the toss and chose to field first and the match began with Kings batting first.

With Rohan Mustafa and A Shrestha as openers, Kings began their innings on a medium pace with Rohan scoring 32 runs in 20 balls and the other managing with just single-digit score. Sagar Pun, next in the batting order, scored 29 runs in 30 balls and giving further hopes of scoring better. But, the next in the batting line-up disappointed the team with their single-digit scores till the end. Finally, Kings ended at a 108 runs in 19.5 overs for the loss of all wickets showing a 5.44 run rate.

Then came in the Patriots! Despite a slow start with single-digit scores, the team managed to win the race with the amazing performances by Malla (21 runs in 22 balls), Bhurtel (29 runs in 27 balls), Karki (28 runs in 29 balls). The rest managed to make only single-digit scores. Karki and Rajbhansi remained not-out. Finally, the Patriots registered their victory finishing the target with one extra run i.e., 109 runs in 20 overs for the loss of 9 wickets, at a 5.45 run rate. Karki of Patriots team was announced the ‘Player of the Match’.

With this win in the Qualifier round, Patriots advanced to the finals of the #EPL2018 and Kings will have to play the Qualifier-2 round on December 20, 2018.

#Day9 (Dec 17):

Biratnagar Warriors Vs Kathmandu Kings XI

The second match of the EPL 2018 #Day8 was an intense battle between Biratnagar Warriors and Kathmandu Kings XI.

Kathmandu Kings won the toss and elected to field first. Warriors began their batting innings Paras Khadka and AK Sah as openers, each scoring 21 runs in 16 balls and 6 runs in 8 balls, respectively. The team continued a slow pace further until S Maharajan who scored 25 runs in 23 balls and H B Chauhan who scored 22 runs in 23 balls. The rest again continued on single digits and the last two ended with zero runs. The team finished at 100 runs for the loss of all wickets in 17.5 overs.

Kings also took the similar time with a slow-paced batting. However, finished the target in 17.5 overs with an amazing batting performance by KJ’ Obrien who scored 45 runs in 43 balls, followed by Sahu who scored 21 runs in 23 balls who stood as the second highest scorer of the team. Finally, the team crossed the set target and scored 106 runs for the loss of five wickets.

Kevin O’Brien was the ‘Player of the Match’.

#Day8 (Dec 16):

Bhairahawa Gladiators Vs Lalitpur Patriots

Patriots won the toss and chose to field first and Gladiators began their batting innings.

Mohammad Naveed and Airee began the Gladiators batting innings with single-digit scores. However, the next two in the batting order, Inder Singh and Doeschate, gave little push with 25 runs in 15 balls and 37 runs in 36 balls, respectively. All the next players in the line-up finished only with single-digit scores. Finally, the Gladiators team finished at 92 runs in 19 overs for the loss of all wickets at a 4.84 run rate.

Patriots began their batting innings with GY Tomar and Kolsawala. Although Tomar made only single-digit score, Kolsawala took ahead the spirit with 22 runs in 27 balls. The rest, other than Sarraf who scored 25 runs in 36 balls, finished only with single-digit scores, driving the team to victory. Finally, the team’s score was 96 runs beating out the set target of 92 runs, for the loss of 4 wickets in 14.2 overs.

Sunny Patel of Patriots was the ‘Player of the Match’ and this match Patriots two more points in the series.

#Day7 (Dec 15):

Bhairahawa Gladiators Vs Kathmandu Kings XI

Day 7 was the Kings XI day!

It all began with Kathmandu Kings winning the toss and choosing to field first. Gladiators began their batting innings on a slow pace as the openers PS Airee and H Shah disappointed the team with nil and single-digit scores. Then came Inder Singh who scored 86 runs (in 61 balls), giving the team a hope to proceed further. Inder Singh continued as a not-out with the next two batsmen Doeschate and Vesawkar, till the end of the team’s batting innings that concluded at 149 runs for the loss of four wickets at 7.45 run rate.

Then the Kings XI stepped into the ground with 149-run target ahead. A Shrestha and Rohan Mustafa resumed the innings with high confidence, as seen in their scores, 51 runs (46 balls) and 36 runs (24 balls), respectively. Sagar Pun came next and finished at 13 runs in 22 balls. Then followed O’Brien (33 runs in 15 balls) and Budayair (4 runs in 8 balls) driving the team to success. The team finished at 153 runs in 19.1 overs at the run rate of 9.78, winning the match.

Amit Shrestha won the ‘Player of the Match’ title and the Kings team garnered 2 more points with this match.

 Pokhara Rhinos Vs Chitwan Tigers

Tigers led the second part of the day with a seven-wicket victory over Rhinos!

The match began with Rhinos batting first. Coetzer and Bhandari, who stepped in as openers, gave a decent start with the duo scoring 23 runs in 17 balls and 27 runs in 36 balls, respectively. The third one in the order, Dhamala give more hope to the team by scoring 51 runs in 42 balls although the next scored only single-digits. Finally, the team finished their innings with 129 runs in 20 overs for the loss of 5 wickets.

Tigers began with an amazing performance by opener Stirling, who scored 55 runs in 46 balls. Though the next three scored less, Airee took the pace to next level with 54 runs in 46 balls. Airee drove the team to success in partnership with Scott who also remained not-out. Tigers hit the victory target by scoring 134 runs in 19 overs for the loss of just three wickets at the 7.05 run rate.

The 20-over match Airee as the ‘Player of the Match’ and his Chitwan Tigers getting 2 new points.

#Day6 (Dec 14):

Pokhara Rhinos Vs Kathmandu Kings XI

Second match of the day was between Pokhara Rhinos Vs Kathmandu Kings XI. ‘

Kings won the toss but chose to field first. Rhinos began their batting with RE Levi and KJ Coetzer as openers. The duo went on with their encouraging performance that in fact balanced the overall team score. Levi scored 38 runs in 21 balls and Coetzer with 37 runs in 25 balls.

Dhamal who batted next disappointed with a single-digit score of 9 runs. P Coughlin stepped in and stood as the team’s next highest-scorer of 37 runs in 38 balls. Rest of the batsmen managed it with single-digit scores. Overall, the Kings team scored 165 runs in 20 overs for the loss of 6 wickets, with 8.25 run rate.

The Kings team that batted next began a striking performance by its opener Rohan Mustafa who scored 40 runs in 31 balls. Though the next two in the batting line-up satisfied with lesser two-digit scores, the team got hopes with the entry of KJ O’Brien who scored 54 runs in 35 balls taking the strike rate to 154.28. O’Brien continued his partnership with the next players and drove the team to success. The team finally smashed the set target by scoring 166 runs in 19.2 overs for the loss of only four wickets. O’Brien and S Lohani remained not-out!

KJ O’Brien was announced the ‘Player of the Mach’.

Chitwan Tigers Vs Biratnagar Warriors

#Day5 of the Everest Premier League 2018 started with the Chitwan Tigers Vs Biratnagar Warriors fight. Warriors won the toss and chose to field first and Chitwan Tigers went on with batting.

The Tigers team began a slow start with PR Stirling and Sunar scoring 15 runs (23 balls) and 30 runs (in 22 balls), respectively. Then the match took a different turn with the performance of the next two in the batting line-up i.e. JA Simpson and DS Airee.

JA Simpson exhibited a sounding performance scoring 78 runs in 44 balls. Whereas, Airee scored 32 runs in 22 balls. Then came GFB Scott who scored 24 runs in 10 balls and remained not-out till the end.

Tigers finally finished with 196/4 score in 20 overs for the loss of four wickets with Simpson as the top-scorer, at a run rate of 9.8.

Then, the Warriors stepped in with Paras Khadka and AK Sah as openers. The duo ended up with double-digit scores of 19 and 12 runs, respectively. Then came Babar Hayat who lifted the team spirit by scoring 90 runs in 42 balls.

Even though Aassif Sheikh could balance the track with 30 runs, the next batting order failed to do so. Eventually, the team lost to Tigers at 191/8 in 20 overs. However, Warriors registered a higher run rate of 9.5 than Tigers.

Lalit Bhandari of Tigers was the ‘Player of the Match’

#Day5 (Dec 12):

Biratnagar Warriors Vs Bhairahawa Gladiators

The fifth day of the EPL 2018 tournament began with the Biratnagar Warriors Vs Bhairahawa Gladiators match. The 20-over match began with Gladiators winning the toss and choosing to field.

Warriors then began their batting line-up with Paras Khadka and AK Sah as openers. However, the openers disappointed the team with their weak, single-digit scores. That continued till Roelof Van Der Merwe who scored 25 runs in 29 balls. Karan KC is the next highest scorer with 18 runs in 15 balls, followed by S Maharajan who scored 15 runs in 14 balls.

Finally, Warriors finished at 91 runs in 18.4 overs for the loss of all wickets.

Gladiators started their batting performance on a slow pace, but finally finished the target scoring 92 runs in 19.4 overs for the loss of 6 wickets. Ryan ten Doeschate wicket scored the highest of all with 20 runs in 33 balls, followed by three other batsmen who scored double-digits and four other batsmen who scored single digits.

Mohammad Naveed was the ‘Player of the Match’ in this match that gave two points to Gladiators.

Kathmandu Kings XI Vs Lalitpur Patriots

The second match of the Day 5 of EPL 2018 saw intense battle between Kathmandu Kings XI and Lalitpur Patriots. The 20-over match began with Kings winning the toss and choosing to bat first. Despite a slow start, Kings team managed it to score 109 runs in 19.5 overs for the loss of all wickets. Performance by KJ O’Brien stood as the highlight from Kings team as he scored 42 runs in 33 balls. S Lohani stands next in the highest score list with 21 runs in 25 balls, among others who scored only single digits.

Patriots began their innings with 110 runs as the target in 20 overs. The team went on with pace at the first instance with openers alone finishing off the set target in just 10.3 overs. JS Kolsawala and Tomar stepped onto the ground and went on with their dashing performance. Tomar stood as the highest scorer with 80 runs in 35 balls, followed by Kolsawala who made 27 runs in 28 balls. The duo drove the team to success scoring 6 runs ahead the set target, finishing at 115 runs in 10.5 overs without losing even a single wicket.

The match gave 2 points to Patriots and ‘nil’ for Kings team. Pawan Saraff was the ‘Player of the Match’.

#Day4 (Dec 11):

Pokhara Rhinos Vs Biratnagar Warriors

The #Day4 of the EPL 2018 series on December 11, 2018, began with the match between Pokhara Rhinos and Biratnagar Warriors. Biratnagar Warriors won the toss and chose to field first. Pokhara Rhinos began its batting line-up with RE Levi and KV Coetzer.

Though the openers made a slow start, the pace picked up little with the entry of P Coughlin who scored 20 runs in 27 balls, who scored the highest of all followed by RP Magar (17 runs in 35 balls). Finally, the team ended up at 84 runs in 20 overs for the loss of 7 wickets.

Warriors began their batting and to everyone’s surprise, they too finished at the same 84 runs in 19.3 overs for the loss of all wickets. However, Warriors won the match by finishing the target as a one-over eliminator. Karan KC of Warriors team stood as the ‘Player of the Match’ that gave 2 points for Warriors and ‘nil’ for Rhinos.

Bhairahawa Gladiators Vs Chitwan Tigers

The second match of the day was Bhairahawa Gladiators Vs Chitwan Tigers. Chitwan Tigers won the toss and chose to field first.

Gladiators began their batting line-up with Airee and Kushal Malla who scored 26 runs in 18 balls and 3 runs in 12 balls. The team got a little push with the entry of third and fourth batsmen, Inder Singh (25 runs in 21 balls) and Ten Doeschate (35 runs in 25 balls). Likewise, the struggle continued till the team ended up at 143 runs at 19.3 overs for the loss of all wickets.

Then began the batting line-up of Chitwan Tigers. Despite a fresh start with Stirling scoring 38 runs in 23 balls, the team went on to see falling line-up with just single-digit scores apart from two-digits by only three batsmen before completely falling down at 131 runs in complete 20 overs for the loss of 9 wickets.

Eventually, Gladiators won the match adding two more points to their account. Ryan ten Doeschate was the ‘Player of the Match’ that saw Gladiators earning 2 more points and ‘nil’ for Chitwan Tigers.

#Day3 (Dec 10):

Chitwan Tigers Vs Kathmandu Kings XI

The third day of the #EPL2018 saw Chitwan Tigers and Kathmandu Kings XI (KK XI) challenging each other in a 20-over match. Chitwan Tigers chose to bat first and ended at 160 all-out within 19.5 overs with just an 8.8 run rate.

Then began the striking performance of Kathmandu Kings XI, who finished the target at 161 runs in 20 overs for the loss of just 4 wickets. Subramanian Anand of KK XI drove the team to victory with his winning performance of 43 runs in 18 balls at 238.88 strike rate and stood not-out.

Sagar Pun and Shrestha were other top performers of the KK XI team. Subramanian Anand won the ‘Player of the Match’ title in this match that gave 2 points for Kings and ‘nil’ for Tigers.

Pokhara Rhinos Vs Lalitpur Patriots

Choosing to bat first, Pokhara Rhinos scored 166 runs in 20 overs at a 8.3 run rate with a dashing performance by RE Levi who scored 84 runs in 39 balls and others.

Patriots’ bowling performance, especially of Bipin Khatri and P Coughlin who took three wickets each, could stop the Rhinos at what they are destined for. But, that did not much time for Patriots to finish the target as they stepped in to bat.

Amazing performances by GY Tomar (82 runs in 41 balls) and JA Kolsawala (51 runs in 38 balls) was a highlight in the Patriots’ batting line-up garnered the team a major score, helping the team to finish off the target in just 15.5 overs.

Supported the duo’s score, the Patriots smashed the Rhinos’ target and went ahead at 177 runs for the loss of only two wickets. Patriots chased the challenge at a batting run rate of 10.8. Gaurav Tomar of Patriots stood as ‘Player of the Match’ that saw Patriots earning 2 points and ‘nil’ for Rhinos.

#Day 2 (Dec 09):

Lalitpur Patriots Vs Chitwan Tigers

The second day of the tournament saw intense battle between Lalitpur Patriots and Chitwan Tigers. Patriots were in hunger for victory after a defeat by Biratnagar Warriors, the previous day. So, that gave them energy to fight out Tigers on December 09, 2018. Choosing to bat first upon toss, Patriots scored 143 runs at the loss of five wickets in the 20-over match.

Sonu Tamang remained a not-out with 35 runs, followed by Gaurav Tamor (30), Sandip Jora (25) and other best scorers of the team. Coming to bowling, it was again Sandeep Lamichhane’s game with the spinner claiming three wickets and was also named the ‘Player of the Match’.

Tigers couldn’t face this pressure and failed at 132 runs for the loss of 8 wickets, losing out to Patriots. This 11-run win against Tigers gave Patriots a winning start in the tournament that earned them 2 points and ‘nil’ for Tigers!

Bhairahawa Gladiators Vs Pokhara Rhinos

The second day of #EPL2018 also saw the Gladiators-Rhinos match, where Gladiators registered a 4-wicket victory win against Rhinos. Rhinos scored 215 runs in 20 overs for the loss of 5 wickets. Then Gladiators stepped in to bat and finished the 215-run target at the loss of 6 wickets, with two balls still left in the match.

Ravi Inder Singh of Gladiators registered a sounding performance in the match with a maiden century in the tournament. Singh scored 125 runs in 60 balls claiming 8 boundaries and 10 sixers. Singh and Aarif Sheikh made a 111-run partnership driving Gladiators to victory.

Ravi Inder Singh was the ‘Player of the Match’ that gave 2 points to Gladiators and ‘nil’ to Rhinos.

#Day1 (Dec 08):

Biratnagar Warriors Vs Lalitpur Patriots

The tournament began on December 08, 2018, with Biratnagar Warriors taking on Lalitpur Patriots. The very first match of the series saw Warriors winning over Patriots by three wickets. Patriots, led by Gyanendra Malla, chose to bat first and scored 104-9 in 20 overs.

That wasn’t a tough challenge for Warriors, who finished the target at a loss of seven wickets, with one ball remaining.

Though the Warriors team lost seven wickets to score 73 runs, it was Nepal’s all-rounder Karan KC and The Netherlands’ Paul van Meekeren who drove the team to success. Karan KC stood as the ‘Man of the Match’ who finished it at 36-runs in just 19 balls and remained not out.

At the end of this match, Warriors won 2 points and Patriots ended up with ‘nill’.

Stay Tuned for More Updates on Everest Premier League 2018…

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This was because the Nepali veteran cricketer and the longest-serving member of the Nepal cricket team Shakti Gauchan said goodbye to his cricket career!

Gauchan, who already announced retirement to the international cricket in July 2018, took the #EPL2018 stage to say goodbye to his domestic cricket career as well.

So, Gauchan’s EPL teammates Pokhara Rhinos decided to give him a rare honor and took the veteran leg-spinner on to their shoulders, amid more than 10,000 cricket fans watching the scene with happiness.

The situation moved Gauchan a lot, who literally cried out of emotion with intense joy waving to his fans with happy tears and for the love his teammates had for him.

“I think this guard of honor and love from the spectators is the result of my honest contribution to the country and loyalty to the game. The emotions in the ground (while receiving the guard of honor and cheers from the crowd) was something which I cannot express in words. This moment is unforgettable for any player and it will etch in my memories for a lifetime,” Gauchan told the media.

Destined for Nepal Cricket: Gauchan’s Records & Milestones

Gauchan, who says his life is ‘destined for Nepali cricket’, made his debut in the senior national Nepal cricket team in the 2002 ACC Trophy against Oman.

From then, the veteran continued to grow with the sport and has successfully completed his
18-year-long active journey with the national cricket team.

When the national anthem was played while I was playing for Nepal for the first time during the 2001 ACC U-17 Youth Asia Cup in Bangladesh, my inner soul had said you are born for Nepal and have to do something for your country. Cricket is the only thing that will direct you. 18 years down the line, the love that I have earned from cricket is something that I am very proud of,” Gauchan added.

Hailing from India, Gauchan began his career as the opener batsmen and set a 1000-run mark, becoming the first Nepali cricketer to do so for the senior team.

Gauchan was equally successful as a bowler too! He is the third Nepali cricketer to have taken 100 wickets after his co-team members Mehboob Alam and Basanta Regmi.

Besides in regular national team, Gauchan also led the Nepal U-17 team in the U-17 Asia Cup and then the Nepali U-19 team, gifting centuries for both the youth and senior teams.

Gauchan also has a special role in Nepal’s maiden ODI entry!

Nepal To Global: ICC T20 Made Gauchan Special!

Gauchan also played for Nepal in many international cricket tournaments.

Gauchan is also the first Nepali cricketer to score 100 runs in the World Cricket League, which he made in Italy during the 2005 Division 2 Qualifier match.

In total, Gauchan played 9 Twenty20 international tournaments for Nepal. He was known for taking 18 wickets in List A and 32 wickets in Twenty20s, and a total of five wickets in the First-Class matches.

Gauchan moved on to leave his mark in every match he played for Nepal in the world cricket!

ICC World Twenty20 Qualifiers at UAE was one termed as ‘Gauchan’s come-back’ after a short gap, where he claimed hat-trick wickets against Denmark becoming the only male cricketer to have made such rare feat in Nepali cricket history.

Following this, he also received a call for brief training camp at the Indian Premier League for Rajasthan Royals.

Gauchan’s reputation as a spinning sensation touched new heights when he bowled the world cricket legend Rahul Dravid! Gauchan also have a special role in Nepal’s maiden entry to the ICC World Twenty20 in 2014 in Bangladesh.

Gauchan’s performance in the World Twenty20 tournament also earned him special recognition from the former Pakistani cricketer-turned commentator Ramiz Raja. Raja called Gauchan “Shakti, The Power” in the Nepal-Hong Kong match, where veteran spinner took 3-9 wickets in four overs and also stood as the ‘Man of the Match’.

“Singing the national anthem during the World Twenty20 and playing at the Lord’s will be memorable for me. I will always miss the ground where I have played and of course being with the national team,” reads Gauchan’s statement.

“My innings as a player has now ended. I know I have to move on now and life is going to take a new turn. My mission now is to help Nepal play the 50-over World Cup and the prime target is to elevate country into a Test nation if I get support from everyone. It’s tough, but we should not stop dreaming because that is how we played Twenty20 World Cup,” says Gauchan.

Now at Everest Premier League 2018!

Gauchan led the Pokhara Rhinos team in the last season of the Everest Premier League, but let the opportunity for Scottish Captain Kyle Coetzer in #EPL2018.

Although Gauchan could not repeat his magical bowling performance, he managed it decently taking 2-132 from 18.5 overs.

“When I came to bowl at the start of the innings, I realized that these overs were going to be my last. I thought of giving the best. Well, it might sound like a joke but when I came to ball the final ball, I was thinking of not being hit for a four or a six,” Gauchan said in a media briefing.

The Conclusion
Thanks to Gauchan who took the Nepali cricket to the next level. Hope Gauchan’s journey and the success tracks of other sensations like Sandeep Lamichhane will inspire and bring more Nepali cricket talents to the limelight.

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ICC has finally given its nod for the Nepal’s big-budget Twenty 20 cricket tournament, the Everest Premier League (EPL) 2018.

Putting an end to EPL 2018 organizers’ months-long wait, the international cricket body gave its approval for holding EPL 2018 that has been scheduled for December 8-22, 2018 at the Tribhuvan University Stadium.

With this approval, EPL 2018 is set to invite international cricketers in its tournament.

ICC has already forwarded the proposal to member countries and global cricketers participating in the tournament are yet to get ‘No Objection’ from their respective countries’ associations.

So far, the EPL board has confirmed the participation of Middlesex’s English wicketkeeper-batsman John Simpson, United Arab Emirates fast-bowler Muhammad Naveed, Hong Kong Skipper Babar Hayat, among others in the upcoming marquee event, besides already-announced cricket stars: Zimbabwean Test player Sikandar Raza and UAE Cricket Team Captain Rohan Mustafa.

“ICC has granted the approval bearing in mind the unique circumstances that currently exist in Nepal and because the league is in the interests of cricket in Nepal and the Nepalese players in particular,” says Clive Hitchcock, ICC Representative at EPL Pvt Ltd.

“This is great news not just for EPL but also for the millions of fans and we are sure that with the support of ICC, EPL will reach greater heights,” says Amir Akhtar, EPL Managing Director.

“EPL would like to thank the fans, players, media and all stakeholders for their continued support. Let’s all work on making this tournament grander,” Akhtar added promising of presenting EPL in the international standards.

The latest decision comes in line with ICC’s new regulations rules, which mandate it to give approval for domestic tournament in a country with cricket board under suspension.

Getting this approval costed USD 20,000 for EPL organizers and ICC extended its commitment to use this sanctioning fee solely for the development of Nepali Cricket.

ICC had earlier suspended Nepal’s cricket administration, Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN), citing ‘government interference and unfair elections.

EPL 2018 is Nepal’s city-based franchise Twenty20 cricket tournament.

World cricket has taken a different turn in recent times with the change of rules by ICC governing body, enabling more opportunities for the potential cricket-playing nations across the world.

Especially for Nepal, winning of ODI status and recent Pokhara Premier League (PPL) 2018, among other previous cricket events are giving a new ray of hope for the country and its talented cricketers to come to lime-light.

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Biratnagar Titans and Pokhara Paltan are playing the first match of the tournament, which has a total of six franchise teams.

While the country’s national cricket team captain Paras Khadka is the marquee player of Chitwan Rhinos, Deputy Gyanendra Malla is leading Kathmandu Royals.

Meanwhile, the country’s spinning sensation Sandeep Lamichhane is the marquee player of Biratnagar Titans and Sompal Kami is playing for Butwal Blasters.

Dhangadhi Blues chose Dipendra Singh Airee and/while Sharad Vesawkar has been roped in as the marquee player of Pokhara Paltan. Meanwhile, two foreign players have also joined the team for this season.

Queens Event Management Nepal is organizing the league with the official support of Nabil Bank, and the tournament will end on November 06, 2018.

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Lalitpur Patriots, which won the toss, chose to bowl first and started thrashing the opposition’s batting order right from the start of the innings.

Claiming a total of seven wickets together, Lalitpur Patriots’ bowlers Suboth Bhati (India) and Nepali U-19 slow left-arm bowler Lalit Narayan Rajbanshi limited Kathmandu Kings’ batting performance to just 89 runs.

While Bhati took four wickets, veteran bowler Mahaboob Alam claimed two wickets followed by an Indian right arm off-break bowler Yogesh Nagar who took a single.

Amit Shrestha, the Top-Scorer

Even though Lalitpur Patriots saw a slow start with loss of its opener Pawan Sarraf’s wicket in the very first over, the team’s batting order sustained with batsman Amit Shrestha’s top performance for 27 runs and Sri Lankan player Akshu Fernanado’s 15-run score.

Jaykishan Kolsawala of India and captain Gyanendra Malla made a 57-run partnership driving the Lalitpur Patriots to success.

While Kathmandu Kings has former Sri Lankan one-day international player Farveez Maharoof as its captain and Akshu Fernando of Sri Lanka and Sagar Kumar of India as squads, Lalitpur Patriots roped in Indian cricketers Delhi Daredevils player Yogesh Nagar, Subod Bhati and Jaykishan Kolsawala in its squad.

The match was held at the Tribhuvan University (TU) Cricket Ground in Kirtipur on December 18, 2017.

The second day of the tournament on December 19, 2017 will see Chitwan Tigers Vs. Pokhara Rhinos playing the first match, followed by Biratnagar Warriors Vs. Lalitpur Patriots playing the second.

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