Nepal Premier League (NPL) 2024 Teams and Squads

Nepal Premier League(NPL) 2024: Team Squads

The Nepal Premier League (NPL) 2024 is a professional men's T20 cricket league organized by the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN), featuring eight franchise teams from major cities and provinces. The league's inaugural season will take place from 30 November to 21 December 2024, and teams will compete in a round-robin format leading to playoffs. The teams include Biratnagar Kings, Chitwan Rhinos, Janakpur Bolts, Karnali Yaks, Kathmandu Gurkhas, Lumbini Lions, Pokhara Avengers, and Sudurpaschim Royals, with top players from Nepal and abroad joining through an auction.
Below are the 8 teams and their respective squads:

Biratnagar Kings

Head Coach: Kevin O'Brien (Ireland)

Key Players:

• Sandeep Lamichhane (Captain) 🇳🇵
• Lokesh Bam (Wicketkeeper)🇳🇵
• Pratish GC 🇳🇵
• Basir Ahamad 🇳🇵
• Dipak Bohara 🇳🇵
• Subash Bhandari 🇳🇵
• Naren Bhatt 🇳🇵
• Mrinal Gurung 🇳🇵
• Anil Kharel 🇳🇵
• Jitendra Mukhiya 🇳🇵
• Rajesh Pulami 🇳🇵
• Aqib Ilyas (OMN🇴🇲)
• Martin Guptill (NZ🇳🇿)
• Nicholas Kirton (CAN🇨🇦)
• Chris Sole (SCO🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿)
• Ismat Alam (AFG🇦🇫)

Sudurpaschim Royals

Head Coach: Jagat Tamata (Nepal)

Key Players:

• Dipendra Singh Airee (Captain)🇳🇵
• Binod Bhandari (Wicketkeeper)🇳🇵
• Arjun Kumal🇳🇵
• Bhoj Raj Bhatta🇳🇵
• Abinash Bohara🇳🇵
• Khadak Bohora🇳🇵
• Naresh Budhayer🇳🇵
• Tej Kumar Kunwar🇳🇵
• Rajendra Maharjan🇳🇵
• Manoj Chand🇳🇵
󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧
• Bradley Wheal (SCO🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴)
• Liam Livingstone (ENG󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿)
• Stephan Myburgh (NED🇳🇱)
• Shakib Al Hasan (Bangladesh🇧🇩)

Karnali Yaks

Head Coach: Gyanendra Malla (Nepal)

Key Players:

• Sompal Kami (Captain)🇳🇵
• Arjun Gharti (Wicketkeeper)🇳🇵
• Gulshan Jha🇳🇵
• Dev Khanal🇳🇵
• Mousom Dhakal🇳🇵
• Dipendra Rawat🇳🇵
• Deepak Dumre🇳🇵
• Rit Gautam🇳🇵
• Bhuvan Karki🇳🇵
• Unish Singh🇳🇵
• Nandan Yadav🇳🇵
• Shikhar Dhawan (IND🇮🇳)
• Hussain Talat (PAK🇵🇰)
• Babar Hayat (HKG🇭🇰)
• Chadwick Walton (Wicketkeeper, West Indies)

Lumbini Lions

Head Coach: Nandan Phadnis (India)

Key Players:

• Rohit Paudel (Captain)🇳🇵
• Arjun Saud (Wicketkeeper)🇳🇵
• Bibek Yadav🇳🇵
• Sundeep Jora🇳🇵
• Surya Tamang🇳🇵
• Bikash Aagri🇳🇵
• Dinesh Adhikari🇳🇵
• Abhishesh Gautam🇳🇵
• Ashutosh Ghiraiya🇳🇵
• Durgesh Gupta🇳🇵
• Tilak Raj Bhandari🇳🇵
• Ben Cutting (AUS🇦🇺)
• Unmukt Chand (USA🇺🇸)
• Tom Moores (Wicketkeeper, ENG󠁧󠁢🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿)
• Ramon Simmonds (West Indies)

Chitwan Rhinos

Head Coach: Umesh Patwal (India)

Key Players:

• Kushal Malla (Captain)🇳🇵
• Bipin Rawal (Wicketkeeper)🇳🇵
• Sharad Vesawkar🇳🇵
• Kamal Singh Airee🇳🇵
• Deepak Bohara🇳🇵
• Rijan Dhakal🇳🇵
• Santosh Karki🇳🇵
• Gautam KC🇳🇵
• Ranjit Kumar🇳🇵
• Amar Routela🇳🇵
• Dipesh Shrestha🇳🇵
• Ravi Bopara (ENG🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿)
• Marchant de Lange (SA🇱🇰)
• Luc Benkenstein (ENG🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿)
• Hassan Eisakhil (AFG🇦🇫)
• Jan Nicol Loftie-Eaton (NAM🇳🇦)

Janakpur Bolts

Head Coach: Pubudu Dassanayake (Sri-Lanka)

Key Players:

• Aasif Sheikh (Wicketkeeper, Captain)🇳🇵
• Anil Sah (Wicketkeeper)🇳🇵
• Lalit Rajbanshi🇳🇵
• Hemant Dhami🇳🇵
• Shubh Kansakar🇳🇵
• Kishore Mahato🇳🇵
• Sher Malla🇳🇵
• Rupesh Singh🇳🇵
• Tul Thapa🇳🇵
• Aakash Tripathi🇳🇵
• Arniko Yadav🇳🇵
• James Neesham (NZ🇳🇿)
• Joshua Tromp (USA🇺🇸)
• Sohaib Maqsood (PAK🇵🇰)
• Mohammad Mohsin (PAK🇵🇰)
• Lahiru Milantha (Wicketkeeper, USA🇺🇸)

Kathmandu Gurkhas

Head Coach: Basanta Shahi (Nepal)

Key Players:

• Karan KC (Captain) 🇳🇵
• Raju Rijal (Wicketkeeper) 🇳🇵
• Rashid Khan 🇳🇵
• Shahab Alam 🇳🇵
• Dipesh Kandel 🇳🇵
• Krishna Karki 🇳🇵
• Bibek KC 🇳🇵
• Sumit Maharjan 🇳🇵
• Rajiv Narayan Shrestha 🇳🇵
• Chandrapal Gharti 🇳🇵
• Sushil Kandel 🇳🇵
• Ravindra Karki (IND🇮🇳)
• Fawad Alam (PAK🇵🇰)
• Mohammad Shahzad (AFG🇦🇫)

Pokhara Avengers

Head Coach: Rajiv Kumar (India)

Key Players:

• Kushal Bhurtel (Captain)🇳🇵
• Dilip Nath (Wicketkeeper)🇳🇵
• Sagar Dhakal🇳🇵
• Aakash Chand🇳🇵
• Trit Raj Das🇳🇵
• Sunam Gautam🇳🇵
• Amrit Gurung🇳🇵
• Narayan Joshi🇳🇵
• Dinesh Kharel🇳🇵
• Bipin Khatri🇳🇵
• Kiran Thagunna🇳🇵
• Andries Gous (Wicketkeeper, USA🇺🇸)
• Bas de Leede (NED🇳🇱)
• Matt Critchley (ENG🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿)
• Raymon Reifer (West Indies)
• Michael Leask (SCO🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿)

Nepal Premier League (NPL) 2024: A Comprehensive Look

The Nepal Premier League (NPL) 2024 is set to revolutionize Nepalese cricket, emerging as the country’s premier T20 cricket tournament. Organized by the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN), the league aims to elevate the nation’s cricketing standards while providing a global platform for local and international players. This year's tournament will take place from November 30 to December 21, 2024, featuring a competitive lineup of eight franchise teams representing major cities and provinces across Nepal.

A New Beginning for Nepal Cricket

Following the challenges faced during the Nepal T20 League in 2022, including controversies like match-fixing and corruption, CAN established the NPL in January 2024 to offer a more transparent and structured cricketing event. The league has been designed to build trust and credibility while showcasing Nepal’s talent on the global stage.

Tournament Format

The NPL 2024 will adopt a round-robin format, where all teams compete against each other in the group stages. The top-performing teams will advance to the playoffs, culminating in an exciting final. Matches will be hosted at various iconic stadiums across Nepal, including the Mulpani Cricket Stadium and Pokhara Cricket Ground.

Teams and Ownership

The eight franchises were sold in a bidding process that collectively raised NPR 16.88 crores. Teams include:

Biratnagar Kings
Chitwan Rhinos
Janakpur Bolts
Karnali Yaks
Kathmandu Gurkhas
Lumbini Lions
Pokhara Avengers
Sudurpaschim Royals

The highest bid came from the Pokhara Avengers franchise, sold for NPR 3.57 crores, reflecting the growing financial potential of cricket in Nepal.

Player Auction

The player auction held on October 6, 2024, showcased the NPL's inclusive approach to team building. Each franchise could form squads of 16 players, including up to four foreign players. Players were categorized into grades (A, B, and C), with base prices ranging from NPR 2 lakhs to NPR 15 lakhs. High-profile players like Aarif Sheikh, Gulsan Jha, and Bhim Sharki were among the top-paid players, earning NPR 15 lakhs each.

Logo and Branding

The NPL logo embodies Nepal's rich cultural heritage and cricketing aspirations. It features symbols like the khukuri (representing bravery), the sun and moon (from the national flag), and Mount Everest (symbolizing high ambitions). The branding reflects the league's mission to connect tradition with modern sportsmanship.

Significance of NPL 2024

Global Recognition: NPL aims to place Nepal on the global cricketing map, attracting international attention and boosting the sport's popularity in the country.
Talent Development: By providing a competitive platform, the league will nurture emerging cricketing talents and offer them exposure to top-level cricket.
Economic Impact: With franchises investing millions, the league is expected to create jobs and drive economic growth in the sports and entertainment sectors.
Fan Engagement: Through innovative branding, live streaming, and high-quality matches, NPL promises an unparalleled experience for cricket fans.

Challenges and Opportunities

While the NPL is a promising venture, it must overcome challenges like ensuring transparency, managing large-scale operations, and maintaining the integrity of the game. However, with CAN's proactive measures, the league is poised to set a new benchmark for cricket in Nepal.

Conclusion

The Nepal Premier League 2024 is more than just a cricket tournament; it is a celebration of Nepalese culture, talent, and passion for sports. With a vision to take Nepalese cricket to greater heights, NPL is set to captivate fans and inspire future generations. This tournament marks the dawn of a new era in Nepalese cricket and has the potential to become a staple in the global T20 cricket calendar.