Lamichhane appointed Nepal's ODI captain as CAN reshuffles leadership

The Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) has appointed star leg-spinner Sandeep Lamichhane as the new One Day International (ODI) captain for the national men's team, effective immediately. Rohit Paudel has been removed from the 50-over leadership role. Lamichhane's captaincy commences with the ACC Premier Cup, scheduled in Malaysia from August 30 to September 12.

CAN also revealed a 14-member squad for the tournament, with Lamichhane leading alongside former captain Paudel, Aasif Sheikh, Arjun Kumal, Dev Khanal, Dipendra Singh Airee, Basir Ahamad, Ishan Pandey, Gulshan Kumar Jha, Sher Malla, Lalit Narayan Rajbanshi, Karan KC, Hemant Dhami, and Sundeep Jora. The vice-captain for the tournament has not yet been disclosed.

This appointment marks Lamichhane's return to the national captaincy after a previous stint ended in August 2022 following legal charges. Paudel then took over the leadership. Following the T20 World Cup, CAN divided captaincy duties, with Dipendra Singh Airee retaining the T20I role and Lamichhane now regaining the ODI mantle.

The move occurs during a critical period for Nepali cricket, which has struggled with batting inconsistency and tactical instability during its ICC Cricket World Cup League 2 campaign. Recent tours saw Nepal suffer significant defeats, including a four-match whitewash against the Netherlands and Namibia. The team currently sits seventh in the eight-team league, jeopardizing their direct qualification hopes and ODI status.

Lamichhane's reappointment prompts scrutiny of CAN's captaincy strategy. Paudel, who holds a statistically strong record with 31 wins from 63 matches as ODI captain, now steps aside for Lamichhane, whose prior ODI captaincy resulted in 4 wins from 14 matches. CAN appears to be prioritizing Lamichhane's individual match-winning ability to lift the team from its slump. Lamichhane is Nepal's leading ODI wicket-taker with 154 wickets in 77 matches.