- Key players like Paras, Gyanendra and Sharad did not click.
- The T20I status was not valued so much when we achieved it one year ago, but when we lost it people knew its value.
- We don't have domestic structure and system and we need to develop it. We should have at least six months of cricket activities.
- I am happy to go back anytime if the CAN does not want me.
Nepal finished 12th in the ICC World Twenty20 Qualifiers jointly organized by Ireland and Scotland from July 9-26 and failed to qualify for next year's finals to be held in India. Out of six matches played in the group stage, Nepal won one match, shared points in another and faced defeats in rest of the matches.The result not only shattered Nepal's dream of playing in the ICC World Twenty20 finals for the second time but also cost T20I status. Besides that, Nepal also lost two matches of the ICC World Cricket League Championship played against Scotland.
Republica scribes Prajwal Oli and Sanjeev Kumar Shah caught up with Nepal's coach Pubudu Dassanayake who had guided the team to the World T20 finals on 2014. Excerpts.
What are the next plans?
Dassanayake: Lots of things are there. Papua New Guinea (PNG) is coming to play matches of ICC World Cricket League Championship (WCLC) and we need to correct our shortcomings of the last tour (World T20 Qualifiers). It is a bigger picture now because we are in Division 1. But we are little bit behind in Division 1.
We were one of the favorites before the World T20 Qualifiers. But we finished third from bottom among 14 teams. What went wrong in the Qualifiers?
Dassanayake: Lots of things like the condition of Europe (UK) was totally different. We missed some training sessions because of the earthquake. However, that should not be the excuse, we did not do well and the responsibility was all ours.
But you have said that the training session in Himachal (India) was best Nepali team had ever had before leaving for the Qualifiers?
Dassanayake: Yes, they provided us whatever we asked for. But it was too short. However we got best out of it.
It was evident that the team seemed overconfident before the Qualifiers.
Dassanayake: Sometimes, teams go with lot of confidence in big tournaments but things do not happen the way they want. For example, Australia was bowled out on 60 against England in a Test recently. But when we see the bigger picture, people need to understand that this team has done so much without strong backing and proper cricket structure in the country.
Was it a perfect decision to play back-to-back matches against the Netherlands in the four-match T20I series?
Dassanayake: The series was perfect and you cannot ask for better training than that.
We even played two matches in a single day in England and some players complained they were too much exhausted.
Dassanayake: The players who failed to perform in longer tour thought the tour was long and tiring. That happens and is natural too.
Wasn't the tournament too much experimental for opening pairs since you chose four different opening pairs.
Dassanayake: That was not experiment. Actually the opening pairs were not clicking and there was no option than changing and seeing if somebody else fit better.
Nepali batsmen failed to perform in most of the matches. What were the reasons for their poor performance?
Dassanayake: That was disappointing. But it is not like they did not try. They were trying and working hard. Especially key players like Paras, Gyanendra and Sharad did not click.
We also lost T20I Status after we failed to qualify for the World T20.
Dassanayake: It was not valued so much when we achieved the T20I status one year ago. But when we lost it, people valued it the most.
We had to play lots of cricket to maintain such status. I think Nepal should look to develop bigger domestic structure, good system to develop the team. I hope Nepal moves in that direction.
Do we mean to say that the domestic structure is insufficient?
Dassanayake: Basically we don't have system and we need to develop it. We should at least have six months of cricket activities at the regional and district levels or some invitational tournaments. Currently we have national tournament that run only for 10 days and it is really insufficient to compete in the Division 1. It is enough for Division 4.
Debutant Siddhant Lohani played only one match and many critics believe he was worth to include in other matches as well.
Dassanayake: I think I have done my job because we picked him up when nobody was interested in him. The main idea of picking him in the team was providing exposure to him.
Some critics say that Nepali cricket team cannot go beyond this as we don't have much ICC tournaments.
Dassanayake: We need to follow the footsteps of Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe - the last three teams that got full membership from ICC. They got full member status because of the system they have -- club cricket, regional cricket and national cricket. At least 10 years is required to develop national level players. There should be proper system for that.
Do you wish to stay here for longer period?
Dassanayake: I am happy to go back anytime if the CAN does not want me. If I can't move this team forward then I can't be there, I will not continue. But we have reached this level with the players and the training effort. But the next level is not only about players and coach but about the system that we create. If there is no system, I will not be able to do the magic anymore, that's where I stand now.
You had issues with CAN during contracts.
Dassanayake: My contract was about to finish in the middle of the Qualifiers, but I did not think about it at all since I was focused on the tournament. I will only stay if I can make a difference.
Do you think you have such powers?
Dassanayake: I cannot do it alone. We are in Division 1, so we cannot do it if we don't have a proper system.
Do you think some players need to be replaced by new ones?
Dassanayake: If you talk about senior players of the team like Paras (Khadka), Gyanendra (Malla), Sharad (Vesawkar), Basanta (Regmi), Shakti (Gauchan), some people think they have played for over 10 years for Nepal and it is time to get new players. But for me, they have matured now and the team won't survive without them for the next two years.
And Paras is still considered the best captain among the Associate nations. Not only me but everyone in ICC think that Paras is intelligent, best batter and good leader. We are lucky to have him. The next step is for the juniors to step up, but they haven't come to this level yet.
As a coach, I am not thinking of replacing them.
What do you expect from CAN?
Dassanayake: I expect the organization to understand the situation right now - the importance of domestic structure. There are ups and downs in any game, so CAN needs to understand the actual issue and work to correct it.
Related story
Revised interest rate corridor system introduced
