December 2013 - World Cup Cricket

How will the qualifiers fare in Bangladesh?

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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: small;">ESPNcricinfo takes a look at the Associates' chances in the first round of the 2014 World Twenty20.</span></h2>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: small;"><b>Group A: Afghanistan, Nepal and Hong Kong paired with Full Member Bangladesh. Winner joins Australia, India, Pakistan and West Indies in Group 2 of the Super 10s.</b></span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">         Afghanistan's loss to Ireland  on  Saturday night was a double-  whammy. Not only did they miss  out on reclaiming the tournament  title in front of a partisan  crowd, but they have now been  dropped into Group A at the ICC  World Twenty20 with the host  side Bangladesh. Afghanistan are  definitely capable of matching  up with Bangladesh's roster and  if Hamid Hassan can stay healthy enough to be in the starting XI for the tournament opener on  March 16, Afghanistan will feel they have every chance of winning.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">   The problem for Afghanistan remains the ifs and buts. They are not a team that deals in certainties and as they showed against England in 2012 they are more capable of spontaneously combusting than they are of causing an upset. Despite the Cinderella nature of Afghanistan's ascent through the Associate ranks, it must be remembered that the shoe still only fits Ireland. They have beaten Full Members in ICC tournament play while Afghanistan have not.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Nepal's strength in Bangladesh will be their spin bowling. Left-arm spinner Basant Regmi adjusted very well to the step-up in class he faced at the qualifier in bowling to Division One Associates and there's no reason he can't do the same against Bangladesh. Shakti Gauchan had an off tournament in the UAE, but he was invited to train with Rajasthan Royals in 2012 and it wouldn't take much for him to regain his best form.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">Unfortunately for Nepal, they have a popgun fast-bowling unit and they'll find it hard to seriously threaten better teams until they can find someone who bowls in the 130s kph at the very least. The batting is stronger than it was three years ago when they were in Division Five of the World Cricket League, but it doesn't match up well against quick attacks. They struggled against Afghanistan's fast men and may find the going difficult against Mashrafe Mortaza and Rubel Hossain.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Hong Kong possesses an X-factor in fast bowling, the heavy-hitting allrounder Irfan Ahmed that Nepal wish they had. With him at the top of the order plus decent support in Jamie Atkinson, Hong Kong may actually stand a better chance of giving Afghanistan and Bangladesh a good fight. Curiously, though, they do not have a good record against Nepal and if they can't beat them, Hong Kong realistically have little chance against the other two teams in their group.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #333333; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">Bangladesh just walloped New Zealand on home soil in an ODI series and although they lost the lone T20, the overall results are a reminder of how formidable they can be in home conditions. The three Associates in Group A have their work cut out for them.</span></div>
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<b style="font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace;">Group B: Ireland, UAE and Netherlands paired with Full Member Zimbabwe. Winner joins England, New Zealand, South Africa and Sri Lanka in Group 1 of the Super 10s</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">Winning the T20 Qualifier final on Saturday achieved two things for Ireland. First, it ensured they would not have to face Bangladesh on home soil. Second, their run spree in amassing 225 for 7 put England, New Zealand, South Africa and Sri Lanka on notice that the Irishmen are coming to the games in March with a fully loaded batting arsenal. Perhaps most impressive of all is that the total was amassed with neither Niall O'Brien nor Ed Joyce in the line-up.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">Ireland won't threaten to bowl any Full Member out, but they won't need to if they can muster up the same batting firepower against better attacks. Zimbabwe's line-up possesses few demons with bat or ball. It would be a major letdown for Ireland if they cannot capitalize on the Full Member pairing that the victory in the UAE has granted them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">Having said that, Ireland is not the only Associate in the group who will be penciling themselves in for two points against Zimbabwe. Netherlands may have scraped into the World T20 with a fifth-place finish in the UAE, but their qualification becomes very commendable when looking through a different lens.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">Netherlands came to the UAE without Tom Cooper and Timm van der Gugten, two players who have been key contributors with bat and ball respectively over the last two years. They have also gone without the services of Ryan ten Doeschate for more than two years since he last appeared in an orange shirt at the 2011 World Cup and made two centuries. He's occupied himself with a T20 freelance career but the prospect of testing himself against the best at a World Cup event could lure him back. There's also the possibility of a Dutch requalification by Dirk Nannes, who was with Netherlands when they upset England at the 2009 World T20. He hasn't played for Australia since 2010 and would be eligible to return to play for Netherlands if he so desired. If he does, then all of a sudden, Netherlands are on equal terms with Ireland.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">Judging by UAE's performance against Ireland in the semi-final at the qualifier, they appear to have drawn the short straw in this group. Their batting is a bit erratic but more than anything it is their fielding which will hold them back in major tournaments. They threaten to concede 20-30 runs each game due to their own inferiority and their opponents' superiority in ground fielding and catching. Against a Full Member that's too much debt to forgive.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">However, UAE will have some very capable spinners to contend with, provided all of them are cleared to bowl. Nasir Aziz was reported twice during the qualifier for a suspect bowling action. Heading into the World T20 without his services would be a major blow.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">While many people are caught up in the rush of Ireland potentially knocking off the lowest-ranked Full Member, it's worth keeping in mind that Zimbabwe beat Pakistan in a Test this September. Brendan Taylor and Hamilton Masakadza were the architects of Zimbabwe's famous win over Australia at the first World T20 in 2007 too. They will expect to do the humbling in Group B rather than being humbled.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">Ireland may currently hold the best chance of causing an upset against the Full Member in this group, but Netherlands should not be overlooked provided they can get all hands on deck. If that happens, it could be a three-way scrap between Ireland, Netherlands and Zimbabwe to make it out of Group B and into the Super 10s.</span></div>
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How will the qualifiers fare in Bangladesh?

ESPNcricinfo takes a look at the Associates' chances in the first round of the 2014 World Twenty20. Group A: Afghanistan, Nepal and...

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ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2014, New Zealand All Squads

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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">Canada – Ashish Bagai (captain), Harvir Baidwan, Khurram Chohan, Parth Desai, Nikhil Dutta, Jeremy Gordon, Ruvindu Gunasekara, Jimmy Hansra, Nitish Kumar, Usman Limbada, Cecil Pervez, Raza Rehman, Junaid Siddiqui, Zeeshan Siddiqui, Hamza Tariq</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">Hong Kong - Jamie Atkinson (captain), Tanwir Afzal, Irfan Ahmed, Nadeem Ahmed, Haseeb Amjad, Waqas Barkat, Mark Chapman, Mark Ferguson, Babar Hayat, Aizaz Khan, Nizakat Khan, Courtne</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #333333; display: inline; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px;">y Kruger, Ankur Sharma, Manjinder Singh, Mark Wright<br /><br />Kenya – Rakep Patel (captain), Ragheb Aga, Duncan Allan, Irfan Karim, Shem Ngoche, Alex Obanda, Collins Obuya, Nehemiah Odhiambo, Nelson Odhiambo, Thomas Odoyo, Lameck Onyango, Elijah Otieno, Morris Ouma, Steve Tikolo, Hiren Varaiya<br /><br />Namibia – Sarel Burger (captain), Stephan Baard, JB Burger, Jason Davidson, Gerhard Erasmus, Shalako Groenewald, Louis Klazinga, JP Kotze, Xander Pitchers, Bernard Scholtz, Nicolaas Scholtz, JJ Smit, Christi Viljoen, LP van der Westhuizen, Craig Williams<br /><br />Nepal – Paras Khadka (captain), Pradeep Airee, Prithu Baskota, Binod Bhandari, Mahesh Chhetri, Shakti Gauchan, Sompal Kami, Avinash Karn, Subash Khakurel, Gyanendra Malla, Anil Mandal, Jitendra Mukhiya, Sagar Pun, Basant Regmi, Sharad Vesawkar<br /><br />Netherlands – Peter Borren (captain), Wesley Barresi, Mudassar Bukhari, Daan van Bunge, Atse Buurman, Ben Cooper, Tim Gruijters, Vivian Kingma, Ahsan Malik, Paul van Meekeren, Stephan Myburgh, Michael Rippon, Pieter Seelaar, Michael Swart, Eric Szwarczynski<br /><br />Papua New Guinea – Chris Amini (captain), Charles Amini, Mahuru Dai, Willie Gavera, Raymond Haoda, Geraint Jones, Chris Kent, Vani Vagi Morea, Kila Pala, Pipi Raho, Lega Siaka, Tony Ura, Assad Vala, Norman Vanua, Jack Vare<br /><br />Scotland – Kyle Coetzer (captain), Richie Berrington, Freddie Coleman, Matty Cross, Gordon Drummond, Gordon Goudie, Majid Haq, Moneeb Iqbal, Michael Leask, Matt Machan, Calum Macleod, Preston Mommsen, Safyaan Sharif, Rob Taylor, Iain Wardlaw<br /><br />United Arab Emirates – Khurram Khan (captain), Amjad Ali, Shaiman Anwar, Nasir Aziz, Salman Faris, Manjula Guruge, Amjad Javed, Rohan Mustafa, Muhammad Naveed, Swapnil Patil, Ahmed Raza, Kamran Shahzad, Vikrant Shetty, Shadeep Silva, Chirag Suri<br /><br />Uganda – Davis Arinaitwe Karashani (captain), Brian Masaba, Deusdedit Muhumuza, Roger Mukasa, Phillemon Selowa Mukobe, Benjamin Musoke, Abram Ndhlovu Mutyagaba, Frank Nsubuga, Patrick Ochan, Faruk Ochimi, Richard Gideon Okia, Raymond Otim, Almuzahim Hamza Saleh, Laurence Sematimba, Charles Waiswa</span></div>

ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2014, New Zealand All Squads

Canada – Ashish Bagai (captain), Harvir Baidwan, Khurram Chohan, Parth Desai, Nikhil Dutta, Jeremy Gordon, Ruvindu Gunasekara, Jimmy Ha...

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Ireland Won ICC Intercontinental Cup For The fourth Time.

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<span style="border: 0px; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a aria-haspopup="true" aria-owns="js_58" class="profileLink" data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/page.php?id=123537584329590" href="https://www.facebook.com/CricketIreland" id="js_59" style="border: 0px; color: #141823; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-weight: bold; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Cricket Ireland</a><span style="font-style: inherit;"> </span><i>won the Intercontinental Cup for the fourth time in its history today as it beat Afghanistan by 122 runs on Day 4.</i></span></div>
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<span style="border: 0px; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>Afghanistan fought back early in the day with a 6th wicket partnership of 114, but no one could stay with Rahmat Shah (86*) once Mohammad Nabi was trapped in front for 49. John Mooney cleaned up the tail to complete his ten wicket haul for the match.</i></span></div>
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<span style="border: 0px; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>With today's victo<span class="text_exposed_show" style="border: 0px; display: inline; font-family: inherit; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">ry, Ireland has set an unique record of winning three ICC titles in three different formats in 2013.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="border: 0px; font-family: 'Courier New', Courier, monospace; font-weight: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b><i><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">John Mooney’s second five-wicket haul in the match took Ireland to a comprehensive 122-run win over Afghanistan on day four of the ICC Intercontinental Cup final, giving the side a historic triumph on Friday (December 13). Mooney took 5 for 36 as Afghanistan was dismissed for 224, giving him match figures of 10 for 81.</span><br style="color: #797979; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;" /><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><br style="color: #797979; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;" /><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">This was Ireland’s fourth title in six editions of the Intercontinental Cup, but this victory marked the first time a team has won three ICC tournaments across three different formats in the same calendar year. Ireland won the World Cricket League Championship title in the 50-over format in October and the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier tournament in November, to go with the Intercontinental Cup title in the longer format.</span><br style="color: #797979; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;" /><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><br style="color: #797979; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;" /><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Mooney’s right-arm medium-pace accounted for Afghanistan’s tailenders after Rahmat Shah and Mohammad Nabi, the captain, had resisted Ireland’s bowlers well.</span><br style="color: #797979; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;" /><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><br style="color: #797979; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;" /><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Afghanistan, who had been set a daunting 347 to win, resumed on its overnight 136 for 5 at the ICC Academy in Dubai, with the pair of Shah and Nabi at the crease. The duo had come together with Afghanistan 85 for 5, and with more than two days left in the match. They focussed on occupying the crease after George Dockrell, the left-arm spinner had taken three of the first five wickets to fall to leave Afghanistan in trouble.</span><br style="color: #797979; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;" /><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><br style="color: #797979; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;" /><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Shah and Nabi stayed together for a further 40.2 overs on Friday, until Max Sorensen broke through to trap Nabi in front for a patient 49 off 179 balls. The sixth-wicket stand was worth 114 runs and had come off 61.4 overs, but once Nabi fell, Afghanistan’s resistance ended quickly as they slid from 199 for 5, losing their last five wickets for the addition of only 25 runs in 11.4 overs.</span><br style="color: #797979; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;" /><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><br style="color: #797979; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;" /><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Mooney cleaned up the tail and though Shah stayed unbeaten till the end on a valiant 86 off 246 balls, the lower order fell away quickly, with the last four batsmen mustering only five runs between them.</span><br style="color: #797979; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;" /><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span><br style="color: #797979; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21px;" /><span style="border: 0px; color: #797979; font-family: inherit; font-size: 15px; font-weight: inherit; line-height: 21px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Mooney, who had taken 5 for 45 in the first innings, took the last four wickets to complete a ten-wicket haul in the match and win the Man of the Match award. Dockrell didn’t add to the three wickets he had taken on Thursday, finishing with 3 for 58 in 34 overs to add to a first-innings three-wicket haul.</span></i></b></span></div>
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Ireland Won ICC Intercontinental Cup For The fourth Time.

Cricket Ireland won the Intercontinental Cup for the fourth time in its history today as it beat Afghanistan by 122 runs on Day 4. ...

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Nepali Cricketers get warm reception

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The Indian Embassy held a reception in Kathmandu on Thursday to celebrate Nepal’s progress into the 2014 ICC Twenty20 World Cup.</div>
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Apart from the Nepal, two teams from India — Delhi Wanderers and Air India — and Singapore national team, who are competing in the Journey to World Cup cricket tournament — also attended the reception. The Embassy also organised an interaction programme on “Future of Cricket in Nepal” on the occasion. Nepal coach Pubudu Dassanayake, skipper Paras Khadka and Amrit Mathur, Advisor to Sports Ministry, Government of India, participated in the interaction where ideas for the development for cricket in Nepal were exchanged.</div>
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Speaking on the occasion, the Indian Ambassador  Ranjit Rae said that the Indian government was ready to assist in the development of cricket in Nepal. Rae also felicitated coach Dassanayake, skipper Khadka by presenting shawls to them.</div>
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The function was attended by eminent personalities including Cricket Association of Nepal President Tanka Aangbuhang, Nepal Sports Council, senior officials from government of Nepal including Chief Secretary Leela Mani Paudyal.</div>
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Nepal earned a ticket to the 2014 ICC Twenty20 World Cup slated for Bangladesh after a qualification tournament in Dubai last month. Nepal finished third in the Qualifiers behind eventual champions Ireland and runner-up Afghanistan.</div>
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Nepal are also set to participate in the 50-over ICC World Cup Qualifier scheduled  for January 13-February 1 next year in New Zealand.</div>
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Nepali Cricketers get warm reception

The Indian Embassy held a reception in Kathmandu on Thursday to celebrate Nepal’s progress into the 2014 ICC Twenty20 World Cup. A...

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INDIAN BATTING STALWART VVS LAXMAN TO VISIT NEPAL ON 2ND DECEMBER

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Former Indian batting star performer VVS Laxman, also nick named as ‘Very Very Special Laxman’ is set to arrive in Kathmandu on December 2nd.</div>
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He is to make a flight to the capital for a one-day visit under the invitation of the Journey to World Cup organisers and the Embassy of India.</div>
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Laxman will be making a travel with the Air India Team who is set to participate in a six-day tournament in Kathmandu.</div>
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“Laxman will not participate in the tournament as he is leaving for South Africa to join commentary box for India’s tour of the Proteas,” Managing Director of Zohra International,  Amir Akhtar informed.</div>
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Laxman is also a member of the Air India Team. This visit to Nepal will make him the fourth Indian batting start to visit Nepal after MS Dhoni (2012), Kapil Dev (1999) and Sunil Gavaskar (2005).</div>
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The Indian batting star has scored a whopping total of 8781 runs in 134 matches with 56 half centuries and 17 hundreds. He also has 34 Test caps and 86 ODI caps for Indian Cricket team.</div>
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INDIAN BATTING STALWART VVS LAXMAN TO VISIT NEPAL ON 2ND DECEMBER

Former Indian batting star performer VVS Laxman, also nick named as ‘Very Very Special Laxman’ is set to arrive in Kathmandu on Decemb...

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Nepal PM Regmi praises team over Twenty20 cricket win

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<span style="background-color: white; color: #505050; font-family: Arial, Helmet, Freesans, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px; text-align: start;">The win is thought to mark the first time Nepal will go to any kind of world cup in a team game</span></div>
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Nepal's acting PM Khil Raj Regmi has congratulated his country's cricket team after they qualified for their first major tournament in Abu Dhabi.</div>
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The Himalayan nation secured an exciting last-ball victory over Hong Kong to secure a place at next year's World Twenty20 in Bangladesh.</div>
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Many fans reportedly said prayers from the stands as Nepal required 13 from the final over.</div>
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Sharad Vesawkar was the hero, smashing the first ball for a straight six.</div>
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He then went on to hit the winning runs to chase down 143 for eight at the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier.</div>
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Nepal now face Afghanistan in the semi-final of the tournament on Friday.</div>
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"This is a historical success for the Nepali cricket team," Mr Regmi said in a statement.</div>
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<span style="text-align: start;">Nepalese expatriate workers in Abu Dhabi celebrated wildly - more celebrations are inevitable when the team returns home</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: start;">It is hoped the team's success will provide a much-needed boost to Nepalese cricket</span></div>
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"This has helped to boost up Nepal and Nepali cricket team's prestige and confidence in the world."</div>
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Correspondents say that the team is likely to receive a heroes' welcome when they return to Kathmandu, regardless of what happens on Friday.</div>
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Captain Paras Khadka's 46 from 39 balls formed the basis of Nepal's run-chase as they won by five wickets.</div>
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Cricket Nepal website editor Somesh Verma told the BBC that Nepal only started playing cricket in 1996.</div>
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"Nepal has never been to any kind of world cup in a team game - this is the biggest moment, not only for Nepalese cricket but for Nepalese sport," he said.</div>
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"I have seen for the past 13 years players struggling, some didn't even have side jobs… [I have] seen a lot of potential players who could have been in this team leave cricket altogether because they couldn't support their families."</div>
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Mr Verma warned that problems facing the game in Nepal would not disappear despite the latest triumph because the country lacks a cricketing infrastructure.</div>
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Six sides from the qualifier will reach the main tournament in Bangladesh next year.</div>
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Ireland, Afghanistan, Nepal and UAE have already secured their places.</div>
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Nepal PM Regmi praises team over Twenty20 cricket win

The win is thought to mark the first time Nepal will go to any kind of world cup in a team game Nepal's acting PM Khil Raj Regmi...

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