ICC CEO Sanjog Gupta Predicts Nepal Could Become the Next Afghanistan or New Zealand in Cricket

Sanjog Gupta, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the International Cricket Council (ICC), has expressed his belief that Nepal could emerge as the next Afghanistan or New Zealand in the world of cricket. Speaking with the international news agency Reuters, Gupta highlighted the rapid improvement in the standard of Nepali cricket and noted that Nepalese players are proving their merit on the global stage. He stated, “Nepal could be tomorrow’s Afghanistan or even tomorrow’s New Zealand.”

Gupta remarked that Nepal has developed an excellent group of players who are steadily rising through various ICC pathways. He added, “They (Nepali players) are demonstrating their capabilities on the world platform.” Over the past two years, the ICC has invested approximately 5 million US dollars to support the development of cricket in Nepal.

Nepal has also secured co-hosting rights for the upcoming Under-19 Women’s World Cup scheduled for next year. Gupta emphasized, “Nepal possesses a significant asset that all sports desire – a large and highly enthusiastic fan base. Today’s supporters are tomorrow’s players.” Nepal’s qualification for the T20 World Cup for the first time in 2014 marked a pivotal moment in the country’s cricketing journey. Following Nepal’s achievement of One Day International (ODI) status in 2018, the sport’s popularity has surged rapidly across the nation.