Sandeep Lamichhane had been included in the World Cup squad replacing left arm medium pacer Pratish GC for the remaining two matches of the group stage in the Carribean.

Lamichhane was previously accused of rape which was overturned on appeal because of lack of evidence. As a result, CAN immediately removed his suspension to have his name in the list of players joining for the World Cup in USA and West Indies. However, he was denied US visa twice despite of the interventions from the members of the CAN, Sports Council and even government. 

After Lamichhane's failure in qualifying for the US visa, the Cricket Assocation of Nepal(CAN) made arrangements for him to participate in the later two matches that would be played in the Carribean soil. His addition to the Nepali squad has already been approved by the ICC Event Technical Committee and he has already fled to the Carribean to join with the squad.

These are some factors that makes Sandeep Lamichhane a very crucial factor for Nepal in the two remaining matches in the ongoing T20 World Cup:

Lamichhane's Experience & Stats in the Carribean Soil

Nepal's star legspinner Sandeep Lamichhane has featured in the Carribean Premier League(CPL) since 2018 where he had 27 wickets in hand in 21 matches with an economy rate of 5.80. This experience of Lamichhane in the similar conditions could help him and his team a lot. 

He has the variations that could trouble best of the batsmen in the similar pitch conditions. He has the experience about the right areas to bowl on these pitches in the Carribean soil.

Sandeep Lamichhane's stats in the CPL

Spin Friendly Pitches in the Carribean

We can see that how the pitches in the West Indies are favouring the spinners with reference to the Carribean Premier League(CPL) and also the World Cup matches that have been played here until now.

For instance, Adam Zampa, with his variations in spin bowling took crucial 4 wickets against Namibia giving off just 12 runs in his spell of 4 overs. He also took 2 crucial wickets against England on Barbados in his previous match.

Another reference we can take is of Akeal Hosein who took 5 wickets in his spell giving 11 runs against Uganda in Guyana. Rashid Khan had also taken 4 wickets against New Zealand in the same pitch.

Although there have not been international matches since over 10 years in the Arnos Vale Ground which is the venue for remaining two matches for Nepal, the domestic league have taken place where we can observe the similar conditions.

A huge Boost to Nepali team

In spite of these factors applying to the Carribean conditions, we have to remember that Sandeep Lamichhane has been out of the game for a long time where he hasnt been included for any of the practice matches for the preparation for the event. It might take time for him to get those balls in the required line and length where he'd be given only the maximum of 4 overs to adjust.

The plan for him might be just to get those areas right and we can expect him getting some wickets, although might not be same quality as before due to the lack of matches played since long time.

Furthermore, Lamichhane needs 2 more wickets in 1 T20I match to equal the record of Afghani star legspinner Rashid Khan for fastest to 100 wickets in T20I. Can he accomplish it in his next encounter against the test playing nation South Africa? Let us know your views on this in the comments section below.