Du Plessis will play the entire tournament from Biratnagar.
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Former South African superstar Faf du Plessis arrived in Kathmandu on Monday to play in the Nepal Premier League (NPL) cricket. He had already been signed by Biratnagar Kings.
Du Plessis arrived in Nepal after playing in the Abu Dhabi T-10 League. His team Vista Riders failed to reach the playoffs after winning only 3 out of 7 matches in the Abu Dhabi T-10 League. He has the experience of playing 69 Tests, 143 One-Day Internationals and 50 Twenty20 Internationals.
Biratnagar has already played 5 matches in the NPL league stage. The team has yet to play against Lumbini Lions and Sudurpaschim Royals. Biratnagar is scheduled to play Lumbini on Wednesday and Sudurpaschim on Saturday. If the team wins one of the two matches, it will reach the playoffs, and if it wins both matches, it will be confirmed in Qualifier 1.
‘I am learning from social media that Nepali fans are crazy. I also like playing in front of a full house of fans. Biratnagar is playing well without me. I will also play to make it better,’ said Du Plessis at Tribhuvan International Airport. ‘I have been playing leagues in many places around the world. "It's easier for me to come here because I'm in this area now," said team director Dipendra Chaudhary. South Africa's fast bowler Merchant de Lange is playing from Biratnagar. Among the players announced by the NPL cricket franchises earlier, England's World Cup-winning opening batsman Jason Roy has already arrived in Kathmandu on Sunday to play for Pokhara Avengers. Pokhara, who came after playing in the Abu Dhabi T-10 League, will field him against Karnali Yaks on Tuesday. The team's New Zealand star Jimmy Neesham has left for the UAE to play IL T-20, while English county veteran Dan Douthwaite has been ruled out of the tournament due to injury.
Photos: Suryams Upreti/Kantipur
Among the players announced by the franchise team, South Africa's veteran spinner Imran Tahir is yet to play in Kathmandu. He was signed by Janakpur Bolts. Janakpur General Manager Niroj Khatiwada said that the final decision on Tahir's arrival or not is yet to be made. He said that Tahir will be absent from the match against Chitwan Rhinos on Tuesday. He said that Tahir is likely to play the last two matches for Janakpur if everything is finalized. Chitwan, which has been under pressure to reach the playoffs by finishing in the top four since
, has included fast bowler George Scrimshaw, who has played for England, in the team. He has played 1 ODI for England. The 27-year-old has taken 96 wickets in 67 matches in all T20Is. He will be the fourth English player in the Chitwan team. Already, Chitwan has Ravi Bopara, David Malan, Saif Zaib and Pakistan's Sohail Tanvir.
Along with Nisam, Lumbini's Gulbadin Naib, Kathmandu Gorkhaz's Gerhard Erasmus, and Biratnagar's Shubham Ranjan have left for Dubai to play IL T-20. Sudurpaschim has included India's Puneet Mehera in the team. It is said that the team's Jas Brown will go to Dubai to play IL T-20 after the league stage.
