Follow UsNepal head coach believes star spinner Sandeep Lamichhane has an important role in the team. The leg-spinner missed the US leg of the ongoing T20 World Cup as he was denied visa, but has arrived in the Caribbean where Nepal will take on South Africa in St Vincent on June 14 (Friday).
Nepal lost to the Netherlands in their next game before their next game against Sri Lanka in Florida was washed out . "The good thing is to have Sandeep and again I would say this purely because we know the kind of journey that we went in last year and Sandeep had an important role to play in that when we qualified," Desai said after the washed out game against Sri Lanka.
"He was core member of this team when we crossed the line against UAE [Asia Qualifier semi-final] and also when we fought so well against Oman in that most important final which we lost in a Super Over. Having said that, again what he, I mean I cannot talk about anything what happens in personal life and challenges but in terms of the cricket journey I think he is looking up for this opportunity and we are looking forward to having him back in the dressing room.
"Again St. Vincent there is no games played yet - so we need to go there and see what kind of condition they will be in. In general, in the West Indies, we expect spin but I think we will have to first watch the game. I think we have an opportunity to watch the game and see what pans out, then work accordingly but Sandeep will play an important role in the team."
Nepal still have in in their hands as far as making it through to the Super Eights is concerned. However, they have to beat South Africa and Bangladesh.
Speaking of the the sort of pitches he expects at St Vincent, Desai said, "I feel that because of the World Cup, maybe the pitches being relayed, drop-in pitches, all that stuff, I don't have a thorough knowledge of that. It seems that you have to be so proactive and you should be so ready that even if there are lateral movement on those pitches, we have to be up for it. We have to be up for those challenges with the skill set that we can present.
"I still believe that we have certain skill sets which should be good on that particular day to challenge and to compete against the best sides."
Desai is no stranger to the Caribbean having been the batting coach of West Indies for a couple of years in the past. "We went there for a week and we played on a different ground but those pitches we were familiar with. It was a little sticky, slow, 180 odd, 160 odd scores still because of the ground and the wind," Desai noted.
"But again, I think we have not really trained anywhere near to the stadium and I think best as soon as you get closer to the stadium and the facilities are put out there you can see that it's a fresh pitches, with a bit of grass, lateral movement with overcast conditions, so seamers are coming into play."
Desai also thanked the fans for showing up in great numbers for both their matches so far. "I was indebted. Just the way the fans have been following this young team all over the globe in cricket, it obviously keeps on bringing the sense of responsibility that we have to bring some more smiles for them. So, I'm very, very grateful to all of them," he said.
Nepal are currently placed fourth in Group D with one point in two games. After the game against South Africa (June 14), they will take on Bangladesh on June 16 both at St Vincent.
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