Nepal legspinner Sandeep Lamichhane hopes that success in the Associates’ Cricket World Cup League Two ODI competition will lay the foundation for a road to his homeland’s Test cricket, adding that it is his vision to donate the whites for Nepal.
“It’s simple. I have a dream to play Test cricket for Nepal and every little contribution from my side will go for Nepal cricket,” Lamichhane told ESPNcricinfo. “Till the day of retirement of my cricket career, I would like to play Test cricket for Nepal. I think the sight of playing Test cricket for Nepal will be amazing. I can get those vibes straight away right now, how that feeling will be in the future. Little steps will take me to that place.”
As one of the T20 franchise circuit’s most in-demand spinners, the 19-year-old Lamichhane has cultivated a fold that transcend Associate cricket. After having his first taste of T20 cricket franchise in the now-defunct Hong Kong T20 Blitz, Lamichhane became the first Nepalese player to be picked up by Delhi Capitals in an IPL auction in 2018, and has since spoken about that in the CPL, PSL, BBL and Global T20 Canada opportunities.
Yet while he receives well in the six figures when all of his franchise deals are tabulated, he’s never been able to say no to his country’s playing. This given the fact that players were not paid for more than a year, according to several reports, as the ICC is seeking to recover from administrative suspension by the Cricket Association of Nepal.
Part of the reason for this is the determination of Lamichhane and his teammates to lift Nepal higher up the global rankings in limited-over formats, which he sees as a vehicle to pursue the dream of Test cricket, especially since the Associates’ four-day Intercontinental Cup competition quietly disbanded after Afghanistan and Ireland’s elevation to Test status in 2017.
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