Monty-Desai. (Photo Source: X/Twitter)
The Indian Premier League started in 2008 and became an instant hit. 15 years later, it is one of the biggest sporting leagues in the world. The cash-rich league has helped India unearth talented cricketers, who got an excellent platform to showcase their skills and rub shoulders with the greats of the game.
Meanwhile, Nepal is one of the fastest-growing associate nations of the International Cricket Council (ICC). They have produced some stunning results in recent times. The Asian team qualified for the Asia Cup earlier this year and showed glimpses of their potential. They recently qualified for the 2024 T20 World Cup. The national team has a huge support base as the sport has gained huge popularity in a short span of time. Nepal head coach Monty Desai suggested a way in which cricket in the country could see immense development.
The former Andhra Pradesh coach requested the IPL team owners to visit Nepal and see how the game is developing in the country. Desai was confident that the IPL franchises would be happy to see the amount of interest in the sport in Nepal, and if they could help their neighbours setup a T20 league, akin to the Major League Cricket in America, it would benefit both parties.
“We are also trying to look at companies with good credentials to come and invest in Nepal T20 leagues. Nepal has a huge potential in terms of eyeballs. There are thirty-five million people,” Desai said during an interview with a sports media outlet.
“The IPL main franchises have gone all the way to the USA. They are investing there. All the IPL franchises should visit and experience a live game in Nepal. There is no question that why you would not invest into Nepal,” he added.
For the unversed, only one player from Nepal, Sandeep Lamichhane, has played in the IPL thus far. The leg-spinner played nine matches for the Delhi Capitals and picked up 13 wickets. He played his last IPL game in 2019.