Nepalese captain Paras Khadka details the team's triumphant and magnificent road to the status of ODI
Nepali cricket has experienced a journey as long and astonishing as the beginning of the Internationals of 39, a day against the Netherlands.
We have always wanted to get to this point but the challenge is to keep growing. Eight years ago, we played in the fifth division of the ICC World Cricket League and now we are among the top 16 nations in the world, with guaranteed ODI status for the next four years.
I hope we can continue because our next goal is to become a test country. We have worked hard for the ODI status and the matches against the Netherlands are opportunities for us to explore, enjoy the experience and hope for good results.
<img src = "https://icc-static-files.s3.amazonaws.com/ICC/photo/2018/04/26/9f7484b6-8c0a-42ff-b301-67db9a49ce6e/Nepal-cricket.jpg" alt = "Nepal will play its first ODI against the Netherlands after a T20I at Lord & # 39; s [19659006] Nepal will play its first ODI against the Netherlands after a T20I at Lord & # 39; s
It is amazing to think how far we have come. Speaking personally, I started playing the game very young at school in Kathmandu. I played all the time – football during the rainy season and cricket the rest of the time.
I did not have any cricket heroes in particular, but I loved watching the big Australian teams a few years
I was dreaming at this point that I could play for my country but fate had other things in mind! It's only when I was selected at the under-15 level that things started to change.
Next, we played at the ICC Under-19 World Cup – beating twice South Africa, New Zealand and Zimbabwe.
One of the happiest days since then was the day of November 27, 2013 when we beat Hong Kong on the last lap to qualify for the 2014 ICC T20 in Bangladesh.
Nepal featured performers v Hong Kong, ICC WT20Q 2013
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I remember being very nervous. You have dreamed all these years and then it is there before you. Three and a half hours drive. You can take the biggest step in your cricket career. It really took a lot of time. We played some of our best cricket during these three matches at ICC World T20, against Hong Kong again, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.
Then this year, qualification of the second division of the world cricket league in Namibia. To qualify in Zimbabwe was another special moment. These are the strengths. This year has been so important to my generation of cricket players because we have worked so hard to get to this point.
We have a fantastic team spirit – this has definitely been a big plus for us. We fight for every race and every ticket office. We have all been very honest and work hard and maybe someone is taking care of us!
We also have an incredible fan following everywhere we go. Nepalese who have settled in other parts of the world come in large numbers to support us – we are very blessed.
We really noticed that support when we played Lord for the first time in 2016. I woke up the next morning and thought, "Are we just playing at Lord's?" a cloakroom where all the big ones in the game was an amazing experience. We were so happy to be able to repeat this week in a T20 tri-series with MCC and the Netherlands.
We are already waiting for the qualifying stages for the ICC 2023 Cricket World Cup. It's a great opportunity. The Government of Nepal is looking to help us grow and hopefully we will soon have a fully functional Cricket Council. If we can gather all the resources, I hope we will have good days for cricket in Nepal.
I have been playing for 15 years and I never thought I would go that far. But there will come a time when it will be enough – it could be in six months or six years. But for the moment, I want to contribute as much as possible and keep pushing myself. It all comes down to establishing standards and starting from there.
As captain, this trip has been fabulous and I hope it will continue. The most important thing is to continue to perform and help the team grow.
