Cricket fans to get free entry to watch all matches of the T20 tournament
KATHMANDU, Sept 20: Former captain of Indian national cricket team Ajay Jadeja is set to come to Nepal to witness the final match of the upcoming Everest Premier League (EPL). Former Indian batsman Jadeja will land on Kathmandu on October 1 to watch the final match of EPL at the TU cricket ground, Kirtipur two days later.
Organizer of the Everest Premier League confirmed Jadeja's arrival during a press conference in Kathmandu on Tuesday. “We had sent him an invitation and he accepted our request. He is landing on Kathmandu on October 1 for a three-day visit,” said Aamir Akhtar, managing director of Zohra Sports Management, which is organizing the EPL from September 24.
According to Akhtar, during his three days' stay in Nepal Jadeja is likely to interact with Nepalese media and cricket fans on the second day after his arrival. Similarly, on the third day, he will watch the final match of the EPL at the TU cricket ground.
Jadeja, who has played 196 one day internationals and 15 Test matches for Indian national team, currently works as cricket commentator and analyst.
“We hope Jadeja's presence will excite our fans and boost the morale of our players,” Akhtar added.
The EPL, which is a twenty 20 tournament similar to the Indian Premier League (IPL), will see participation of six teams owned by corporate houses. They will compete in round-robin format.
All those teams will be led by Nepali national team's cricketers. Tej owned by Panchakanya Group will be captained by Sharad Veshwakar, Colors X Factors owned by Teletalk Pvt Ltd will have Gyanendra Malla as its captain, Vishal Group Warriors owned by Vishal Group will be skippered by Paras Khadka and Kantipur Gurkhas owned by Kantipur Publications will be captained by Basant Regmi. Similarly, Jagdamba Rhinos owned by Shankhar Group will be captained by Shakti Guachan and Sagarmatha Legends owned by Ghorahi Cement will have Binod Bhandari as its skipper.
During the press conference, the organizer also confirmed that they have secured insurance for all of the 84 players participating in the EPL. “For the first time in the history of Nepali cricket, we have insured the players by tying up with Shikhar Insurance,” informed Akhtar.
The organizer also informed it has arranged free entry for cricket fans to watch all the matches during the tournament. “To increase the fan base of Nepali cricket, we have decided not to charge entry fee to the fans throughout the tournament,” informed Akhtar.
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