The Cricket Association of Nepal on December 15 appointed Sandeep Lmaichhane as the new captain of the Nepal national cricket team. But this was not a usual decision as it came after the body suspended the central contract of four players for six months and removed Gyanendra Malla as captain and Dipendra Singh Airee as vice-captain.
The decision was taken by the board after the players were found to be breaching the disciplinary protocol of CAN after the players were engaged in a protracted payment dispute with the body.
Lamichhane who is currently plying his trade for the Hobart Hurricanes in the BBL feels that the matter will be solved soon as the team would look to prepare for the T20 World Cup qualifiers for the 2022 T20 World Cup.
"It's an honour for me to lead this country. There's been a lot going on between players and CAN. In this tough time, we have to back up each other. All the players and CAN have to come in one place to take Nepal cricket to the next heights,” ESPNCricinfo quoted the leg spinner as saying.
“It's a tough time for Nepal cricket but I'm looking forward to getting this team through every thick and thin so that we have a great time ahead. It hurts to see all these things right now. There's nobody who can help us to go through it. There has been a lot of ups and downs.
But with the kind of skills our players have and the kind of big heart they have, I'm pretty sure they're going to represent Nepal and prove themselves. [Malla and Airee] are one of the main pillars of the Nepal team. Though they are not captain or vice-captain or don't have that tag right now, for me, they are still the best players in the team,” he added.
There is pressure being built from outside on the CAN as well with former skipper Paras Khadka who just retired from international cricket tweeting in favour of the cricketers.
"We are in support of our cricket players. Justice has to be served. Hopefully CAN will take its decision back and players can start training to focus in preparations for the T-20 World Cup qualifier in February and to maintain our ODI STATUS in coming days,” Khadka wrote on his Twitter timeline.
With the Qualifiers not far, it would be interesting to see how the matter is solved by CAN.