Wai Wai Women´s National T20 Cricket Tournament will kick off on Saturday. Likewise, Pepsi Men´s National T20 Cricket Tournament will also start from the same day. Both the tournaments will conclude on June 6. [break]
Women´s games will take place at the TU Cricket Ground, Kirtipur while the men´s tournament will take place at the Pulchowk Cricket Ground.
This is the third national tournament in women´s category. An exhibition tournament was held three years ago at the ground of Lab School, Kirtipur to pick up team for the ACC Women´s Cricket Tournament 2007, Malaysia.
A year later, the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN) had conducted the first official women´s tournament and Region Number 5 Nepalgunj had clinched the title defeating Region Number 6 Baitadi in the final. The second edition of the women´s tournament was completed during the Fifth National Games last year and Baitadi had won it.
CAN Secretary Tarak Mani Dixit informed that the players for the 16th Asian Games, Guangzhou and the ACC U-19 Women´s Championship, Singapore will be picked on the basis of the national tournament.
ACC U-19, where Nepal are the defending champions, is scheduled from September 30 to October 10 while the Asian Games will take place in November. Cricket has been introduced for the first time in the Asian Games, where CAN is sending both men´s and women´s teams in its own expense.
On the men´s side, this is the second edition of the National T20 Tournament. Region Number 3 Kathmandu had clinched the title last year after thrashing Region Number 4 Bhairahawa in the final match.
After the completion of T20 tournaments on June 6, Men´s National One-day Cricket Tournament will begin on June 7. CAN has claimed that cricketers will get match practice on the eve of the the Asian Games and the Pepsi World Cricket League Division-4. The Division-4 tournament will take place in Italy from August 14 to 21.
A preliminary national team is under closed-camp training for the past two weeks and they will take on Millennium International Sports Club, Delhi before taking part in the national tournaments. They will play the first match on Thursday in a three-match series.
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