Nepal women's team captain Rubina Chhetri desires to play cricket in Kashmir

Cricket is the second most popular sport in Nepal after football. The biggest cricketing achievement of the national cricket team was when the men’s team reached the qualification tournament of 2014 ICC World T20 held in Bangladesh. Nepal is an associate member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) and is continuously working towards the development of the game in their country.

The Nepal women’s team made their international debut in the ACC Women’s Tournament in Malaysia in July 2007 and finished up as the runners-up. The current captain Rubina Chhetri had once bowled a miracle over in which she conceded only one run to end the match in a draw. Nepal eventually won the match in a bowl-out. She is also the first cricketer from Nepal to take a hat-trick.

Chhetri is set to feature in the Chief Minister’s T20 Premier League along with several other Bangladeshi players. The tournament is jointly organized by Jammu and Kashmir police and state Sports Council. Initially, Rubina was unsure of her participation in the league due to security issues in Jammu and Kashmir.

However, she has overcome her fear and is likely to showcase her talent in the tournament. Besides the international women cricketers, 70 players from 15 different states of the country and 45 state players, including a half from Kashmir are taking part in the tournament.

“We have mixed the players and formed eight teams with vice-captain and coach of each team being from the state as part of our efforts to provide an opportunity to the local girls to interact with national and international players to boost their morale,” Rajesh Gill, who is a member of state Sports Council, was reported as saying.

First of its kind event

The event is first of its kind where local players will get to interact with their international counterparts and get to learn a lot from them. The conditions in the region are not stable which may force players to back out from the tournament.

“I came to know that Jammu and Kashmir are different regions and violence is restricted to Kashmir region. After meeting the girls from Kashmir and coming to know about its scenic splendor, I am looking for the day when I visit that part too for a game of cricket,” Chhetri said.

She is impressed with the cricketing talent in the local region and expects them to represent their country soon.